Well… we’re almost finished with the remodeling of the “West Wing” on the 3rd floor (there’ll be two offices there for Clark and Michael… but no “Oval Office” ;-).

This weekend and the first part of next week we’re getting ready to the visit of 8 couples — they’ll be spending the weekend in Berlin and staying in the (almost empty) rooms on the men’s floor. Then, as my grandma used to say, “Lord willing and the creek don’t rise…”, remodeling on the men’s floor can start on May 3. It’s amazing to see how far God has brought us… thanks to so many friends. My heart is filled with thanks!

Wow!
It’s been a while since I wrote in the “Prayer Blog”!
Where to start: there have been some really important things happening in “Haus Nazareth” –
The basement remodel is almost finished! Our friends from the Nazarene church who have been using the Garden House for services have already moved in with their Sunday school classes!
We’re moving quickly toward the next step of remodeling: the student living areas.
Hopefully, in the next week, the work will begin.
We have 3 volunteers from the U.S. here working with us: Emmi and Kaysha from Idaho and Tyler from South Dakota (we may seem to favor the less heavily populated states… but we’d welcome volunteers from California and New York just as much!
They’re a HUGE help to us, especially as we try to keep everything on track during the intense remodelings.
I’ll try to write in the next blog about what’s been happening on the college and university scene.

I missed church today… but have a good explanation: a wonderful cellist and special friend of Haus Nazareth (he organized the benefit concert of young musicians) gave Matthias and Sieglinde tickets to a concert of the Waseda Symphony Orchestra (Tokyo) at the Berlin “Philharmonie”. The hour and a half performance was amazing, especially the concluding rhythm piece by the Japanese composer Maki Ishii.

But the 45 minute piece by Richard Strauss “Ein Heldenleben” (A Hero’s Life) made the deepest impression on me… Not really knowing the work, as I listened to the music (which is, to put it mildly, “over the top”) I could not help wondering to myself: “Who in the world did Strauss write this to honor?” As I read the program at the interval, all became clear: Strauss wrote it about himself, the heroic artist standing against the criticism of smaller spirits.

Quite a contrast to J. S. Bach (a work of whom was also played after the pause). Bach was a passionate follower of Jesus, who often wrote in at the end of his compositions SDG “sola deo gloria”: “Glory be to God alone!”

Quite a choice for us humans, too: who’s your hero?

More mundane but no less exciting news: Tomorrow the work begins on the heating in the basement. God has provided just enough funds to move the next step on the journey! Hopefully (and prayerfully!) we anticipate the children’s services offices moving into the basement by May. This, in turn, will free up the “Garden House” for ministry (the church of the Nazarene is renting it for their services; they are special folk and we look forward to them being with us for while yet!).

Thanks for your continued prayers and support!

I’ve been in New York this week… I was able to get a flight roundtrip from Berlin for 300 Euros.

Since Daniel (our son-in-law) was here to read a paper, it seemed like a good opportunity to reconnect with friends and possible “Haus Nazareth” contacts here… and pick up a replacement for my dying laptop (RIP).

There are so many connections between Berlin and New York, especially in the arts and creative worlds. One NY gallery owner said: “Half of the artists I know are either in Berlin or want to be!”

I’m currently staying with our good friends, Roy and Laura De Young at their home out in New Jersey. You can see the skyline of Manhatten from their back porch! (But it is bitter cold in the eastern U.S.; I’m looking forward to getting back to Berlin to warm up!)

As Ash Wednesday (the beginning of Lent) comes up this next week, I wanted to share with you a “prayer” by T.S. Eliot in his poem (appropriately titled) “Ash Wednesday”:

“Teach us to care and not to care
Teach us to sit still.”

Pascal wrote that most of the problems in the world come from people not being able to enjoy sitting still in their own home…

The next stage of remodeling is due to begin soon with the property management office on the ground floor.
(It is important that the professional offices be finished, so that a regular rent stream will begin that can carry the major weight of mortgage and upkeep payments.)
Also, funds have come in to begin the work on the staff apartment on the 3rd floor.
One of my favorite psalms is Psalm 84, where the song-writer reflects on the glory of God’s temple. Walking through the courtyards, he notices the sparrows and swallows flitting back and forth near the altar, and reflects on the privilege these little birds enjoy: they “dwell in Your house; they are ever praising you”. (Anyone who has sparrows and swallows nearby can understand what the singer had in mind!
Our hope and prayer is that “House Nazareth” will become a place where people sense God’s presence so clearly! Thanks for being with us on this adventure!