Why I am going to Mozambique

I received an email the other day about a little girl named Maria. She is 11-years-old and has three

brothers and a sister. If Maria lived in America she might be in my fifth-grade classroom. She might play on a local volleyball or softball team. She might listen to One Direction, watch Frozen, and go out for pizza on Friday nights.

But Maria lives in Mozambique.

I doubt she’s heard of Taylor Swift, the Hunger Games, or Papa John. Maria doesn’t go to school. Her parents died from HIV/AIDs. She and her older brother were forced to beg for money. And then during a frightful night last month, Maria was raped and beaten. The details are scarce, but Maria survived. She was taken to a hospital and underwent emergency surgery. The government asked a local orphanage to house she and her sister Florentina. I don’t know what became of her brothers.

This orphanage is called the Melanie Center and in July, along with a team of 11 others, I get the honor and privilege of visiting it. A group called Life for Mozambique (LFM) supports the Melanie Center. LFM is a non-profit entity run by Life Covenant Church in Torrance. I recently wrote about the genesis of LFM and the Melanie Center, which you can read (here). In short, the Melanie Center is more than an orphanage. It is a community center that provides vocational training, medical care, and clothing to the children and the adults in the area. LFM is funding a chicken-raising enterprise to help the Melanie Center move toward self-sustainment. A second Melanie Center will be opening soon. Additionally, Life Covenant has planted nine churches in Mozambique.

We leave on July 3^rd and will be in Mozambique until the 17^th. I am sure the flights will be painful, the heat extreme, and the accommodations less than comfy. But I don’t care. I am so excited to be included in this team. Here’s why:

1.     I have the time and I want to use my summer vacation intentionally for others. I have a nice two-month vacation. In the past I’ve worked summer school. I’ve also visited Italy and Peru. Most of the past 13 summers have been about resting and leisure. It’s time to give back.

2.     I believe in the work of Life for Mozambique. LFM is a really solid organization. First of all, there isn’t any overhead, salaries, or admin costs. It raises money through silent auctions, run/walks, and garage sales. It keeps expenses low so the bulk of the money gets to Mozambique. I also like how LFM takes a holistic approach to serving. Physical needs are equally as important as spiritual ones. LFM aims to bring education, medical care, clothing, job training, and food to the people in the villages near the Melanie Center.

3.     I want to experience what God is doing. I believe he is doing marvelous things in Mozambique. Children like Maria are being helped. Their lives are being transformed. Many have been transitioned into families. I can’t wait to see what is happening. I want to write, take pictures, and bring the news back. I want to talk to the children, listen to their stories, and see their smiles. I want to cheer when the second Melanie Center opens its door. I can’t wait to see what an African worship service is like. Maybe I’ll even hold a chicken.

4.     It’s not about us. I believe God cares immensely for the people of Mozambique. He loves the poor, the orphans, and the widows. The LFM team has repeatedly asked God to show them how to help in Mozambique. And he’s answered. This trip is about the opportunity to see God move and to join in what he is doing. This “ministry” is not about budgets, or numbers, or agendas, or recognition. It is about providing assistance to those who really need it. And in Maria’s case, saving a life.

5.     Maybe I’ll be changed. Jesus, Paul, James and other voices of the New Testament make it clear that loving God and living a life of faith involves serving the needy. But going on this trip doesn’t make me some kind of spiritual superstar. In fact, it points out my failure to help the people around me. My church has a monthly homeless dinner that I’ve never attended. If I can travel to Africa, I can surely break from my routine to serve pasta to the less fortunate. Life Covenant is working on a project to join other local churches provide shelter, food, and vocational services to homeless families on a year-round basis. I hope to be involved when this starts up. I need to slow down, turn off the ballgame, and ask God how I can serve others in my community. Because there are orphans, widows, homeless people, and Marias here too.

Our itinerary is starting to come together. We will be hosting a theology conference, visiting local churches, running a vacation bible school, researching other self-sustainment options, taking kids to the beach, inaugurating the second Melanie Center, and holding medical treatment clinics.

This is going to be an amazing endeavor.

July can’t get here soon enough.

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Note: I would be thrilled to talk to if you’d like to learn more about this trip. Also, I really need your prayers. Lastly, if you like to donate financially, you can (here).

Take Me Out to the Zoo -- Baseball's Animal Terms

The baseball season started two weeks ago. Which means it’s time to open up my Baseball Dictionary for my third annual column of obscure words from our pastime. Coincidentally, the movie Noah hit the big screen the same weekend as opening day, so here are the top animal terms that made it into print. By the way, Noah would have been a great power hitter because he could really swing the lumber.

A is for Albatross Contract – A long-term contract that is so exorbitant as to make it virtually impossible to trade a player. The Mariners and Tigers inked some contracts lately that are completely for the birds.

B is for Bear’s Nest– A shabby hotel. Imagine today’s overpaid millionaires having to stay in a Motel 6? They’d be calling their agents faster than you could say, “I’ll leave a light on for you.”

C is for Cowtail Swing – A long swing of a bat held at the very end of the handle, resembling the looping motion of a cow swinging its tail. Also known as swinging for the fences. See Mike Napoli.

D is for Dog Robber -- A derisive term for an umpire in reference to his integrity. With the adoption of instant replay, we should have fewer dog robbers making the calls this year.

E is for Eagle Claw (A well-shaped fielder’s glove) and an Elephant Jockey (A big cumbersome player). Most elephant jockeys in the big leagues don’t own an eagle claw because they’re too rotund to play in the field.

F is for Fat Cat Syndrome – The pattern of a team that falls apart the season after winning a championship. I hope the Redsox experience a serious fat cat syndrome this season.

G is for Gopheritis – A mock disease in which a pitcher is unable to keep the ball in the ballpark.  Or what Tigers pitchers experienced while facing David Ortiz in the playoffs last season.

H is Hippodrome – The Hippodrome was a vaudeville palace in New York City. In baseball it is a fraudulent game in which the winner is determined beforehand. In it’s verb form (hippodroming), the word refers to the act of gamblers bribing players to throw a game. See Black Sox Scandal.

J is for Jackrabbit-- a player with great speed, (Syn. Zebra) or Jackrabbit Ball (a baseball that seems to carry much further than most regular baseballs). Teams need an outfield full of jackrabbits to track down jackrabbit balls hit into the gaps.

K is for Kangaroo – a player who leaps or takes high strides while running. The Dodgers and the Diamondbacks opened the season in Australia where kangaroos actually delivered balls to the umpires in their pouches.

L is for Lamb or Lambaste – A lamb is a young ball player, while to lambaste is to bat a ball extremely hard (Syn. Whale). The majors are filled with lambasting lambs: Stanton, Longoria, and Goldschmidt. But my favorite is Mr. Trout, who can whale the ball to all fields.

M is for Monkey – A poor hitter, so called because he makes a “monkey of himself” in a futile attempt to get a hit. The Angels have a couple of monkeys receiving albatross contracts.

O is for One-Eyed Cat – A playground variant of baseball using only home plate and first base. I’m not sure how fun this would be. Probably about as exciting as a game of Pickle with only two players. Which is also known as “playing catch.”

P is for Peacocking – Pinching the front of one’s jersey and plucking it several inches from the chest. See Yasiel Puig.

Q is for Quail-High Hit – A base hit that sails over the infield at the height that a quail flies when flushed. A weak quail-high hit can be just as important as a three-run homer, especially when it defeats the Yankees. See 2001 World Series, Game 7.

R is for Rug Rat – A small, but intense, player. See Dustin Pedroia and Rabbit Maranville.

S is for Sitting Ducks and Snakes -- A Snake is a good curve ball and a Sitting Duck is base runner that is tagged out by a wide margin. Sometimes a missed snake on a bunt attempt can leave a runner as vulnerable as a sitting duck.

T is for Turkey – Syn. of home plate. Speculation says that this 19^th-century term popped up because home plate was likened to a turkey platter.

V is for Vulture – A relief pitcher, typically a middle relief pitcher, who receives credit for a win to which another pitcher was more entitled. A vulture loves to record one out in the top of the ninth to retire the side and then earn a win when his team rallies for a walk-off victory.

W is for Workhorse – An honorific term for a tireless pitcher who appears in many games or a large number of innings during a season. In today’s game, the workhorse has been put out to pasture. Last season saw four pitchers each notch a league-leading four complete games. Which makes real workhorses like Steve Carlton, Gaylord Perry, Fergie Jenkins, and Sandy Koufax shudder in disbelief.

Old Noah could have used some workhorses. Maybe then it wouldn’t have taken him 100 years to build that boat. Oh, and by the way, Noah’s favorite ball player? Arky Vaughan, of course. Who, incidentally, died from drowning.