Wow! We’ve finally got our flight to Berlin booked!
We leave on Monday, February 4th and land in Berlin the next day.
Are we ever excited!

Thanks for your prayers!

More soon!

Over the past couple of years, God has been speaking to me more and more directly on the subject of forgiveness.
Up until now, I have not felt ready to speak publicly about my own journey and discoveries; but I was invited to speak at the Boise Church of Christ last Sunday and as I thought about what I should speak on, my heart was moved to finally begin talking about this topic.
The sermon was both audio- and videotaped and is on the website of the church if you’d like to join me and hear a bit more about my journey. In particular, I try to make clear from the Scripture what “forgiveness” is and isn’t and the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation (restoration of a relationship).
Here’s the link to the church’s sermon page if you’re interested. (Please pardon the music in the background; it was not intentional and is due to a technical glitch in the recording system. I did not speak the entire time with music repeating itself in the background!

I just returned from Berlin a couple of days ago - 21 hours from door to door! (There is a good connecting flight with Northwest through Amsterdam, though. It avoids London and Paris - which is a great mercy.)
The time in Germany was EXCELLENT - The German friends of Philosophia and Haus Nazareth are really stepping up to the plate. They have committed themselves to raising the funds for the first phase of remodeling to be completed by the end of December!
A key prayer request in regard to this: the bank has indicated a willingness to approve an increase to the mortgage based upon the rise of property values in Berlin, but there has to be approval by an inspector. Please pray that this will go through without any hitches!

Exciting news: there is an amazing openness to the idea and vision of Haus Nazareth among both believers and “not-yet” believers in Berlin. One of the latest manifestations of this is “Concert in the Garden”. This is the story: a world-class cellist who became aquainted with the Ploners and Haus Nazareth decided to organize a benefit concert for the project. One thing led to another and now 12 of the leading cellists in the Berlin Philharmonic and other world-class orchestras are holding a benefit performance in the garden on September 23rd! Please pray for good weather!

Ann and I are very anxious to get relocated permanently back to Berlin as soon as possible - we are planning on moving in early January.

One key to this will be the finances for the loans and mortgage payments due by December 31st. More on that later!

Clark with Bob and Cathy Caldwell at the Brandenburg Gate

The past couple of weeks have brought some real joy to our lives - in particular, Ann and I have been encouraged by the love and friendship showed us by Pastor Bob Caldwell and his wife Cathy and the Calvary Chapel church in Boise. It has been a very special blessing the way they’ve loved and cared for us.
Now, the church is also increasingly committed to partnering with the calling and ministry vision of Philosophia International and “House Nazareth”.
Ann and I were talking about this a few days ago: in spite of the pain we’ve experienced at times from people who claimed to care for others but turned out to be power-hungry and abusive, God has consistently blessed us on our journey with people who are true companions on our pilgrimage to the “heavenly City”. My thoughts turn to John Bunyan’s famous picture in Pilgrim’s Progress of friends that Christian meets on the road, Faithful and Hopeful.
Wherever you are on your journey, I pray the Lord will surprise you with unexpected friendships.

In this post-Easter week, I’ve been reflecting on what the Apostle Paul wrote to his friends in Corinth about the relationship of Jesus rising from the grave and our own day-to-day lives as His people:

“He was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God’s power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God’s power we will live with him to serve you.” 2 Corinthians 13:4

The House Nazareth project has, of course, occupied our thoughts, prayers and almost every waking moment for the past year. Sometimes I just feel overwhelmed by the magnitude of it all.
Yet, as Paul reminded the early believers, our weakness is not the end of the story. God’s power is what brings life out of death and service out of weakness.
Please continue to pray for us as we seek to discover new partners for the outreach in Berlin. Remodeling must begin on the ground floor right away for the property management office to move in this summer. This is crucial for the entire business plan to succeed: the rent from the ground floor offices will carry the main weight of the mortgage and upkeep payments for the entire project.
Email us if you would like a copy of the DVD explaining the project for friends or an updated overview of the financials and business plan. You can write us at info[at]philosophia[dot]org.

Wow! Tempus fugit! (Time flies!)

I wanted to let you know several items of wonderful news and points for prayer:

- Seanne and Daniel are safely back in the States after their amazing summer in Africa and Israel/Palestine. Thanks for your prayers for them! (Seanne’s infection seems to be conquered.)
- Also, the funds for the mortgage payment on House Nazareth came in just in time! The generosity and commitment of our friends sometimes just overwhelms us!
So… please continue to pray now for the funds for the next step in general remodeling (electrical and plumbing work) and the ministry apartments.
- Ann’s oral surgery went well, but she’s still struggling against the infection in her jaw and sinuses. We appreciate your continued prayers!
- Our friends and ministry partners from Berlin, Dr. Matthias and Sieglinde Ploner, have been in the U.S. with us for the past week. I’ll try to update you at the end of this week on the time with them.
Shalom!

A wit once observed: “Minor surgery is what they do on somebody else”. I deeply appreciate your prayers for my heart operation last week. Your friendship is not something we take for granted! Last Thursday, I was on the receiving end of four and a half hours of endoscopic heart surgery in Boise. I stayed in the hospital for three days. Ann and I had decided that this was the most prudent course of action, but it was a hard decision for us to make. There is so much going on with Philosophia and “House Nazareth”!

For 8 years, I’ve suffered heart arrhythmia (“atrial fibrillation”). Over the past year, this has been increasing in frequency and lasting longer and has been unresponsive to medication. Because I am gifted with an otherwise healthy heart, the doctors considered me an “excellent candidate” for the procedure (sounds almost like being considered for political office, doesn’t it?)

Everything went extremely well. If you’re interested in the actual procedure or anyone you know is suffering from heart arrhythmia, you might want to take a look at the web site on the technique; if you REALLY want a lot of technical medical information, you can also see a panel discussion and an actual operation online. (Click on “View Live Webcast”; not recommended for the faint of stomach.)

At any rate, this was clearly a bit more than a simple outpatient operation and it’s going to take some time for me to get fully back up to speed.

Would you please pray for continued speedy recovery, the upcoming “House Nazareth” mortgage payment (end of September), and the Ploner’s visit to the States? (Matthias and Sieglinde have carved some time out of their busy schedule to come to the U.S. for two weeks to share the vision of “House Nazareth” from a German perspective.)

Thanks, too, for your continued prayers for Seanne and Daniel. Their time in Israel is going well, although Seanne picked up an E. coli infection. (Not from unwashed spinach; this is an Israeli-grown bug.) She’s feeling better but could still use some prayer support as Daniel heads into the last 14 interviews he’s scheduled to do with Israeli and Palestinian leaders.

A thousand apologies for the long delay in posting to the “prayer blog”. The battle has been pretty heavy!
In the midst of this intense time, I am having heart surgery in Boise tomorrow (Thursday, Sept. 7) for a heart arrhythmia condition. We are moving ahead after consulting with 4 physicians. Would you please pray that surgery will go well, that there will be a quick recovery, and that this will make a real difference in my future energy and input level for the ministry in the coming years?
Also: Would you please pray specifically:
- that we will find the best firms, best price and right volunteers in Berlin to help in each phase of the remodeling and for us to receive all the necessary funds for each step.
- for the financing for “House Nazareth” to continue to come in; since much of the purchase price money was in the form of short-term, interest-free loans, we need to repay these loans on schedule. Until the remodeling is finished, Philosophia will have to bear the main weight of the quarter-yearly mortgage payments; the first is due September 30th. Also, the first major loan needs to be repaid within the next few months.
- for Seanne and Daniel, as they are traveling to Israel for his work on peace and conflict resolution. Would you please pray for God’s protection as they travel and do interviews in both Israel and Palestine?
- for continued growth and unity in the Philosophia leadership on both sides of the ocean as we work together and carry the responsibility for the direction of the ministry.

A quick update on the Malawi mission: Seanne, Daniel and Ira arrived safely and have had an amazing 4 days meeting with key people there.

They have been able to sense the hearts of the Malawian leaders and their deep desire to give the next generation genuine hope through this film project. Please continue to pray for their travel safety and further conversations and meetings as they wrap up this initial visit in the next three days and fly back to Germany on Thursday via Ethiopia.

Would you please pray for Seanne and Daniel?

They are on a mission with their friend and colleague, Ira, for 8 days to MALAWI in central Africa. Malawi is one of the poorest and neediest countries in the world.

Here is the story in Seanne’s own words:

Dear Pray-ers,
Daniel and I have been invited to a small country in Africa, Malawi, to help tell the amazing story of God’s grace in the country’s journey from a dictatorship to a democracy. A Christian organization that played a central role in the events that led to this incredible story has asked us to come and film a documentary that will be used in schools, university, on national television, and at “public viewing stations” in the remote villages. The men and women who led this revolution were the pastors and priests of the country, followed by the students and workers.

Although the story is not a “Christian” story, it bears the marks that faithful men and women leave on any event in history when they follow God’s call. The country has been ravaged by five years of famine and people are beginning to equate this hard-won democracy with hunger and famine and death. This summer is all about “pre-production”: interviewing key people and preparing for the actual filming.

Then, next summer we plan to interview the 20 men and women who were the key figures in this revolution so that the story of this small country isn’t forgotten.

We would be honored if you would join us in prayer on this trip. OUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE, as we see it now, will be to ensure that the men and women who have asked us to come see our hearts, that they truly internalize that we are there to serve them and not to make this story our own. We are bringing our skills, our talent and our connections to make it possible for them to record their history in a way that the coming generations will be able to build on.

Would you please specifically pray that the project will remain a Malawian project? We come to serve not to “take over”.

Please also pray that our hearts would meet with those of the key people involved and that we would be able to really plan out next summer.

Also please pray that we can really gain a good picture of costs in Malawi for our budget.

And finally, please pray for our meetings with the spiritual leaders of the country. Pray that we become friends and that we can come to see their dreams for their country and this project.

Thank you for joining with us on the incredible journey!
In our Master,
Seanne & Daniel