Freedom- from religion? Or - to believe?

I just came across this article which explains some of the differences between Europe and the USA and how we view religion. I thought that they really captured a the significant differences and did a good job of explaining how our different histories have led us to where we are today.

Happy Thanksgiving!

To see some Thanksgiving pics go here. We also have some other albums here, here and here.

A Walk in the Park

Today was a beautiful day in Santiago. It was cool and crisp. Lori was working at the cafe this afternoon so the girls and I went to a nearby park to collect some leaves and enjoy the fresh air. This park used to be a monastery. They don't make granite playhouses like they used to 300 years ago. :)

Why are we here?

Tonight I am speaking a GBU. It is a Bible Study for university students in Spain. I am going to talk a little bit about International Teams and the kind of work they do all around the world. Then we are going to do a Lectio Divina on Isaiah 61. I love this passage! It is what Jesus read outloud in the synagogue at the at the beginning of his ministry. It made some people so mad that they tried to kill him. My challenge for the students and myself is how can I take part in fulfilling Isaiah 61 where I am? Also, if God is challenging me to some specific ministry or place what am I doing about it? I often wonder what the world would look like if Christians all around the world lived out their life daily with a sense of their life being about ministry. When we pray "Thy Kingdom come" do we really mean it and seek it today? Do we really see our selves as anointed by the Spirit of the Sovereign? Do we see our selves as healers and rennovators of the ancient ruins in peoples lives around us? Do we see ourselves displaying the splendor of the Lord? What would that look like, the "splendor of the Lord"? Will we hear our calling as priests and ministers of God no matter our vocation or station in Life?

November News 2005

Recent Visitors- We just spent a few days with visitors from IT. Barthe Companjen and Rick Knox stopped by on a journey throughout Spain as they look at future ministry opportunities for IT. Tim Barnes posted a few entries about his time here with us that you can read at his blog On The Global Edge. Todd In France- Todd works with International Teams in France. Lori and I have been reading his blogs lately to get an insider's view of why there is unrest and what is happening. We have found this really insightful and learned things that we would not learn just watching the news. Cafe News- It has been fun starting to meet some of the new students who frequent the cafe with new school year. In our very limited space we added a Laptop Zone last week. This allows us to free up some of our table space and provide electricity for our laptop users. We put it in the front window so our laptop users have a great view while they are doing their work. We also just put in a new art exposition by local artist Estrela Rua. Video Project- Gary Brunson is a freelance video producer from Texas. He has come for a few weeks to donate his skills to helping the team capture the atmosphere of SdC and the Cafe. This will be a great way for us to show what is happening here to prospective team mates and interns. Future Teammates- We are praying for future teammates, especially those who have a background in Spanish and Managerial skills. If you fit that description and have been feeling a nudge towards cross-cultural ministry send me an e-mail at matt.swain@iteams.org. Family News- We have some new photos posted on our family album page and If you have not had a chance to see what Lori has been writing about lately you can visit her page here. There is also a link to it in the right column. --->

Interesting Article

Here is an article describing the refugee situation in Spain. This is a little about International Teams and and basic facts about refugees. The following quote on the IT sight made me wonder how we think about and treat refugees. "Refugees in the Bible include Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Joseph, and Jesus."

IT Websight

Lori and I are so proud to be part of IT and love to see all of the ways that they are serving people and embodying the Gospel around the world. When we went through training and stayed at the headquarters in Elgin, IL one of my favorite things about that time was meeting people from all around the world and hearing their stories. If you would like to see a glimpse of some of the things that God is doing through IT, then I invite you to take a virtual trip around the world via internet. International Teams just totally refurbished their web sight and you can check it our here.

Seasons Change

We have been enjoying an extended summer until today. We have had months of beautiful sunshine and cool evenings. However, I think that that has come to an end today with the dark rain clouds of winter. The kind of dark wet days that make you want to curl up on the couch with a good book and a cup of tea. Anyway, with the change of the seasons I have been thinking about the changes this new year will bring in the seasons of the ministry here.

The student life is returning to SdC and the tourists are fading away with the summer weather. As the students return I would like to ask you to be praying for our team and the café. Santiago has around 40,000 students and that I know of only two small Bible studies for University Students. One is Catholic and the other Evangelical, each with around 30 students. That is literally a drop in the bucket in comparison with the size of the University here.

I would ask that you pray for our team and the students that we meet. Pray that we would meet students with whom God is already stirring something in their heart. Pray that God will give us a voice into the Christian student groups here to challenge them in what it means to live their faith outside the comfortable walls of the Christian circles of friends that they have. Please pray that God will foster and bless our relationships with the small remnant of Christian leaders who are working here in Galicia (our province) and help us to encourage, bless, and challenge them.

Also, pray that God will give our team wisdom as we wade through cultural and historical religious mine fields. Pray that God would guide us in the best way to plant and water in this place. Just as the apostle Paul stated, ^“6I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. ⁷So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. ⁸The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. ⁹For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building.” 1 Corinthians 3:6-9

We thank you so much for your prayers for our family and for this ministry!

Back Online

Hey, thanks for your patience, everyone. Sorry about the internet fiasco and slow communication. We are now back online. It has been a great fall here in SdC with the students returning back to school. Santiago has morphed from a tourist town back into a college town. I always prefer the town with students more. Something about the students bring a vibrancy and life to the SdC. I had the privilege two weeks ago of going to Holland and visiting one of my good friends Marcel. We met in Santiago when he worked a Christian hostel for the group Oasis Trails. It was good hanging out with him and meeting his family. The were very hospitable and I felt like I received an insiders look at Holland. I was very impressed by their bicycling culture, something you almost have to see to understand. Besides visiting a lot of the tourist things like the VanGogh Museum and the Church tower in Utrecht, we also got visit a hostel ministry and a cafe ministry that reach out to youth in Amsterdam. It was great to see what they are doing in the midst of that beautiful country.

Internet Down

Hey everyone, I just wanted to let you know that our internet has been down for about a week. All week wanadoo has been telling us it should be working tomorrow. So, if we are slow in responding to e-mails, that is the reason. Hopefully it will be resolved "tomorrow". :) Blessings, Matt

Happenings

We have had a very fulfilling end of summer living here in Santiago. We have had prospective new IT international workers come and visit our team. We have two new interns that will be spending about 5 and 1/2 weeks with us. Our new teammates the Baileys are settling into their new apartment here and life in SdC. Jacob Bailey has been taking an intensive Spanish course which bringing back a flood of memories to me of arriving in SdC 4 and 1/2 years ago and trying to comprehend and communicate with those around me. When I called him the other day his words came out in a mix of Spanish and English. I remember learning Spanish making it hard for me to spell in English (not that I was a great speller to begin with). Abigail has started back to her preschool and her Spanish is returning rapidly. Isa is talking like crazy (in English). It this age when Abigail was quiet it meant that she was getting into something that she shouldn't. When Isa is being quiet it most often means we find her in a bed or on a chair reading a book (she must get that from Lori). I have been taking photos around the city some of which will be serving as inspiration for upcoming projects in Art Club and I continue working on some music. Yesterday I went to a conference on evangelism at a church in A Coruna. It was so good being with other Christians and learning about some of the things God is doing in the Church in Galicia. Please continue praying for the church in Galicia. Pray that God will bless our relationships with Christian leaders who are already here and that he will raise up new leaders out of this generation.

Castro de Barona

Yesterday we drove the girls through the mist and fog of a typical drizzly Galician day. We made our way to the coast to this ancient Castro. It is on a tiny peninsula with jagged rocks on each side. It was discovered in 1933 but had been used by the ancient inhabitants of Spain. In the 1st century a.d. it appears that the Romans had inhabited it. In the rain and drizzle and crashing waves Lori asked, "Who would ever want to live in the cold dark wet place?" I said that it would be a good excuse to drink more cafe con leche.

Summer News

Summer Interns We got back from the states a few weeks and as soon as we touched down in Spain we hit the ground running. First, we got to meet our summer interns who are here helping us in the cafe and in the ministry in general. We have been having a blast getting to know them and see them challenged in what it means to minister cross-culturally. Honeymoon in Spain We were privileged to have two different sets of honeymooners come and visit us in the last two weeks. Lori's cousin Matt Smith and his wife Kay passed through SdC on a tour of Spain and Portugal and we all had a blast hanging out and seeing the sights of SdC. This week Matt's college roommate Peter Marshall Came with his wife Stacy. It was awesome catching up on old times and telling college stories. New Cafe Adventures Also a good friend of ours, Belle, came through with a group of four friends. The are thinking of starting a cafe similar to TN either in Europe or in the USA. The have been cafe hopping around Europe to get ideas for their cafe and learn from the mistakes of others. New Teammates This Thursday our new teammates arrived in SdC. Jacob and Tanya Bailey and their two children Caleb and Hannah. The girls are having a blast with their new friends as they are staying at our house while they search for a new apartment. We are excited to have them here with us and pray God's blessings on their life and ministry here in SdC,

The Swains

To see photos from our trip go here.

Back In Spain

We are now back in Spain and still trying to get over the jet lag. Our flights all went well. Eventhough we flew through London the day after the attacks there we did not encounter any problems. There is a six hour difference between Spain and Ohio. So we want to sleep and eat at all the wrong times. We had a wonderful visit with friends and family while we were in the States. We came home to meet the 6 American interns who are here helping us out for a few weeks. We also got to met the Striblings new baby boy William Samuel Stribling.

Trip to USA

We just wanted to let you know that we will be leaving SdC and traveling to the USA this weekend. Please pray for our travels. With a one and three year old it can be a long and exhausting trip, so please pray that God gives us strength and that it is overall uneventful. Lori's brother Eric is getting married and so we will be home most of the month of June. If you need to get in touch with us, we will be staying with Lori's mom in Lancaster, I will also be checking my e-mail frequently.

Ode to STARWARS

After 28 years the saga of my generation is complete (unless someone picks up chapters VII, VIII, IX). We'll see. In the meantime I made this to celebrate.

SdC Happenings

Jehovahjireh- The Lord provides We just wanted to share that we have 9 of the 12 new pledges we need this year. We want to say a special thank you to those of you who have pledged for the first time. We are constantly reminded of our faithful God. To read more, visit our support page. New Art Exhibit We just hung some new pictures at the café for a new exhibit. If you would like to see the exhibit, you can see it here. To see past exhibits, go here. Travel Book Two nights ago Troy, Scott, Brian and I were sitting in a café having our weekly team/café meeting. Troy looked out the window and said, "Hey, that's Rick Steves from the PBS travel show." Scott and I concurred, and Brian ran outside to give him a card from the Terra Nova. He told Brian that he had heard of the café and wanted to find us before he left SdC. The next day while I was working he came in and had a coffee. We talked about Santiago and various sights he had seen. Before he took off he asked if it would be OK to put Terra Nova in his new travel book. I said, "That would be great." Interns Wanted Are you interested in a cross-cultural ministry experience? We are looking for people interested in spend 1-3 months with us this fall and winter. If you have questions e-mail me at matt.swain@iteams.org Spain and Culture Following are some articles that talk about a new law that paves the way for homosexual marriage and adoption rights in Spain. To read more go here, here or here.

Spain from a satellite photo.

Life in General!

Café Life! We just celebrated our one year anniversary of the café opening on April 5th. It is amazing to me how much has changed in one year within the café. Last year at this time we were struggling to make some of the most basic Spanish coffees and now we are able to whip them up with an almost mechanical fluidity. When someone orders something like a "descafinado de maquina con leche doble largo de café con dos azucarillos"(double shot decaf espresso with milk and two sugars) we can almost have it made before they finish ordering. We have also made a ton of new friends from visiting interns, employees, local workers and students. There is always a buzz of life in the café and a sense of community. It is also often full of young people with laptops as they check their e-mail and international students are often heard talking in their native tongue with friends and family around the world over a free internet phone service.  

Coffee Talk "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect..." 1 Peter 3:15 If God is good why does he allow tsunamis to happen or natural disasters in general? Why would God create a world with pain, and suffering, and things like cancer? The Old Testament is full of so many bizarre laws and stories. How are you supposed to know what is relevant for today? Why did God make the Israelites sacrifice lambs and bulls? That seems pretty weird. Why does it matter if you pray if God already knows everything already anyway? I am a pretty good person so why is it that God and Christians are so concerned with sin? These are just some of the topics a friend of mine brought up when we were out to coffee the other day. I really appreciated his questions and we had a great discussion. I think these questions are great not just for my friend who is looking for God, but they really remind me of the beautiful God that we serve as I step back and see the big picture of Christianity. It helps me understand my own faith better as I articulate my beliefs and translate them into words and ideas that my friend can understand. Lori and I would like to ask you to pray for this friend of ours as he is seeking God (and God is seeking him). Also, please pray that God would provide more conversations like this for both us and for you as well. We are his witnesses! If we claim to be a Christian we are called to make disciples no matter where we live in the world and no matter what our occupation.  

Family Life Lori and I have been working through a ProTools manual in our free time. ProTools is a home recording gadget that I got for Christmas. It has hardware and software that allows you to set up a virtual recording studio in your house. Lori is technologically savvy and has the discipline to go through the manual chapter by chapter (Something that I find amazing about her. I just keep clicking away at the computer until something works or I get frustrated) . I enjoy seeing all of the pretty colors come up on the computer screen when I play my guitar. Well, hopefully in a few months we will have some music to go with my songs. The girls are doing well and Lori has been keeping a blog about them here.  

Spain Life One major cultural difference that we have noticed living in Spain is the age that people move out of their parents' house. In the States most of my friends were itching to get out of the house by late high school and parents, while loving their children, wanted to see them become independent and responsible adults. In Spain, most young people I meet have no real plans to leave home and don't really think about it until they begin to approach thirty. Some just never move out. To them we are weird. To us they are weird. Well, for "young" ( 25-34 year olds) Spaniards who want to leave home sooner a big reason that they stay at home is simply because it is hard to find work. Some new options may be available for the adventurous "young" Spaniards in the near future.  

Tech Life I use the internet service Gmail which is powered by Google. They just increased the amount of Space that they give their users to over two Gigs (and counting). The idea is that you never have to delete an e-mail unless you really want to. It is passed out by invitation only, so if you are interested in setting up an account e-mail me and I will invite you (until I run out of invitations). Contact me at my permanent e-mail address: matt.swain@iteams.org

Back in Spain!

After 4 days, ten airplanes, and countless hours spent roaming terminal K in the Chicago O'Hare airport I am now back with Lori and the girls in Spain. Had a blast during my time in the states, it was very refreshing to catch up with so many friends and get to share what we see happening here in Spain. The hardest part of my trip was being away from the girls. When I got home we spent the weekend picnicking and enjoying a lot of time together. Lori and I feel so blessed when we think about the awesome friends that God has blessed us with all across the USA. Thank you so much for your prayers during my trip and for the ministry here in SdC!

Prayer Request

Matt will be traveling around the states from February 28 to March 9 visiting friends. Please pray for safety in his travels and pray for Lori as she will be at home with the girls by herself during those ten days. We are so thankful for your prayers! Sincerely, Matt and Lori

February Update

Great News! As you probably already know, this year Lori and I need to raise $800 for our monthly support to make up for the exchange between the dollar and the Euro. We are happy to say that we have already received two pledges of the twelve that we need to get us to our goal. We have received one new pledge for $100 a month and one new pledge for $50 a month. We want to thank you for praying with us! Art Club I have really been enjoying art club. We have been picking different themes each month and it has been a great time to get to know some other artists and students. I really love how the art work is coming out and look forward to our upcoming projects and themes. I have published several online galleries so that you can see a little of what we have been up to. You can go here or here. Family Life Lori has been keeping a blog of what the girls are up to. I have so much fun reading it and seeing the fun and interesting things that she has captured in print. Check it out here.

Happy Brithday

Guess who turned 1 on February 11. To see photos of Isa's party visit our family album.

T.N. T-Shirts

T-shirts with the cafe design are now available. If you are interested visit the TN Gear page. Proceeds go to the cafe.

The Body of Christ

New Life A few weeks ago we visited a new church in a city an hour north of us. The Pastor has stopped into the cafe on several occasions and invited us to visit. The church is located on the edge of A Coruña, in a converted warehouse. The had a full band and overall a nice contemporary service, but that is not what impressed me even though it was stylistically lightyears beyond anything else I have seen here. What really impressed me was something that I have not witnessed in the other evangelical churches that I have visited in Spain. They had a time of prayer at the beginning of the service where they prayed for other churches in A Coruña and Galicia. They prayed that God would facilitate new churches being started in Santiago dC and various other cities through out the region. They prayed for the Catholic church as well and especially for a nearby priest who is starting an Alpha course at his church. This outward focus was very different from the typically introverted churches that I have experienced. I praise God for New Life and the way in which they are seeking to live up to their name and for the example they are. Ecumenical Mass I was invited to an Ecumenical Mass this week. I have mixed feelings about the whole thing. First, I am very excited that the Catholic church is reaching out to evangelicals, in a land where Roman Catholics often view Evangelical churches s as cults. Evangelicals also remember being oppressed by a dictatorship in which the R.C. church was too closely aligned to the power and money of the government. Anytime I see people from either group break down the walls of division that have been built up over the centuries I am very encouraged. I say I have mixed feelings because while it was an ecumenical mass, I was one of only three evangelicals there. I don´t know if that's because evangelicals were not invited or because they did not want to come. So, it was great that the R. Catholic Church is reaching out, but I think there is way more potential for true followers of Christ to worship and work together for the Kingdom. I still left being overall encouraged and praising God at the first bloom I see in the winter of animosity. Pray for the Church Please remember to pray for the church in Santiago dC and in Spain in both your personal and corporate prayer times. While 98% percent of Spaniards would claim Roman Catholicism, the vast majority are not practicing Catholics. Last year in the Spanish Newspaper "El Pais" it said that the average age of practicing Catholics in Spain is 65 years old. Just this week I read the following article "Spanish Youth Survey shows 50% decrease in believers over 4 years". Business as Mission The following is an excerpt from Wheaton College's alumni magazine explaining the important role of business as mission. It caught my eye because it is a great example of Christians living their life as ministry, especially in the business world. It also gives some insight into the philosophy behind a cafe business as a place of ministry. To read more, it is on page 16 in the online Wheaton Alumni Magazine. "Business is the most underutilized institution in society in promoting Christian values of justice, stewardship, human dignity, and peace," says Dr. Norm Ewert, associate professor of business/ economics, and the facilitator of the business-as-mission work group on campus. The work group exists to identify ways in which Christians in business may holistically serve people’s needs in a way that demonstrates the reality of God. Dr. Ewert explains, "Pastors and missionaries preach on Sundays, but they don't have regular contact with great numbers of people. Businessmen and women, on the other hand, deal with customers and employees on a daily basis..."

King's Day

Today is King's Day in Spain. It is the third and last in the winter Holiday season here (Christmas, New year, and King's day). Last night the my sister Rebecca (who is visiting for her winter break) and I took Isa and Abi to watch the King's day parade (Lori was working at the cafe). The Kings throw handfuls of candy into the crowds of people and last night little kids across Spain went to sleep dreaming about toys that the Kings were going to bring. This is the Spanish way to celebrate epiphany, when the kings (or wise men) visited Jesus and gave him extravagant gifts. Some families in Spain give gifts on Christmas and not on King's day, some on King's day and not on Christmas, and a lot give gifts on both to start and end the holiday season with giving. Today everything in town is closed (except for maybe one pharmacy that never shuts down). We are going to celebrate over a meal with some Spanish friends of ours. And then next week, life returns to normal as the holidays fall behind us. Happy King's Day!