In the Raw

so i realized that i've been having a hard time writing to an audience i didn't know. but i just got done writing to a good friend of mine who was unaware of what rebs and i have been doing, other than the fact that we're in korea. so i guess you can consider this a bit of a recap with some more intimate details. i'm pasting what i wrote below with a few modifications. enjoy...

i can relate to where you're at right now. i went through all of college thinking i was going to be a camp and rec major without even thinking too hard about it. i enjoyed learning about it alot, but i'm still not sure if that's what God has in store for me. all i know is i want an adventure with whatever path he has me take. hence, korea. but anyway, i got out of school, went to korea the first time, and then on the road trip with caleb (which is a great way to kill a friendship, by the way. although we did recover). then i didn't know what to do. so i got a job as a bike mechanic. then rebs and i got serious and she told me i wasn't making enough money to support "us" for when we got married. that was God's wakeup call for me. it was the hardest thing to hear, but it was true. so i started looking and praying for the right job. and sure enough within a few weeks, my friend had a part time opening at his job that paid about twice what i was making as a bike mechanic, and it was as a recreational therapist, which is similarly related to my field. the part time job shortly became a fulltime job, which i held until we moved here.

honestly, i think i've learned a few things. one is that God is going to use you no matter what you're doing. two is you're going to get crapped on no matter where you are in life, whether you're working at mcdonalds or for google. there's no perfect world. it's more about your perspective. that's why i'm glad to hear you talking about being content in whatever the situation. you asked if i'd read any good books. the answer is no, but i read a chapter of this book called _irresistable_revolution_ by shane claiborne and it's powerful stuff. very hippie-esque, minus the pot. oh, and two more things i learned along the way. it's way more about who you know than what you know in this world, especially when it comes to getting a job. and the other part goes with it. it's all about who you know and how you present yourself. basically, if you learn to be friends with anyone, and be respectful of your differences, it's hard not to end up in good standing with the people you work with, which can be worth alot. you find yourself looking forward to work than dreading who you'll see.

so... to answer your questions. korean life is like playing supermario brothers (the original). you go down into the subway like you go through the portholes. when you come out, you're in a new world. this city goes on for days! i can't begin to describe how big it is. but there are skyscrapers, people, and polluted air everywhere. one thing that's been extremely hard for rebs because she's more introverted than i is that it's really hard to get alone in this country. there are literally people everywhere. even when you go up to the mountaintop, there are 65 year old men hiking around as if they're 35 year old americans. the koreans are in great shape. and they've got workout stations along the mountainside with pull-up bars and incline benches for inverted situps and bench presses. it's pretty cool except that it's too cold right now. it always gets below freezing at night.

our contract is through the end of october '08, but we're probably going to be here for two years. our goal is to have all $_____ worth of student loans paid off completely before we come home. and with the exchange rate of the us dollar right now, that looks very possible. i just hope it goes back up eventually.

the climbing here is pretty cool. there's actually a climbing gym about 15 minutes from where we live, which is amazing because it seems like it takes twice as long to get anywhere here than when we were in the states. if you want to go to the equivelant of wal-mart, it'll take you 30 minutes just to get there because you have to take 2 busses. the only exception is if you have a motorcycle because they all weave in and out of the traffic. and you're not going to get a ticket unless you do something really stupid or kill someone. but on a motorcycle, you're more likely to kill yourself. oh, so the climbing. there's sort of an unspoken rule among climbers that you should be nice to people. it just amazes me that on the other side of the world, i get the same vibe among the climbers here that i do at home, which is friendly and helpful. every time we go to the gym, someone is there to show us a new route. they're great at pushing us because in korea, when they boulder, they do it for endurance more than strength because it's alot of work to go climbing. you have to basically take an entire day to go. which reminds me, i get to go climbing outdoors this saturday. but i have to be a the subway station at 5:30 am to do so because i guess the train going south out of seoul only leaves at 7am and 12pm and nowhere in between. so we're catching the 7am one so we can get full day worth of climbing in. it should be interesting. i'm actually very excited.

yeah, if you haven't figured it out, we're in south korea. but we do go to a group called catacombs on tuesday nights to talk about and pray for the north koreans. we're still looking for the right way to get involved. one bad thing is that our work keeps us so busy and our schedules are very random at times that it's hard to know when you're going to have off, which makes it hard to commit to things and this is a very long sentence.

"how's married life?" is a single person's question because that's like asking "how are you doing?" it could entail so much. but rebs and i are doing good. she's had a couple culture shock break downs, but i think that's to be expected.

you asked "what's God teaching you right now?" i think he's working all around us. there are 45 foreign teachers living in our village, so there are english speakers everywhere, and a few of them have become interested in the bible lately. one of the coolest things that's happened so far is that a couple of our korean teacher friends wanted to start a bible study with us. so we meet every thursday and talk about the verses we read every day. it gives us a chance to apply what we're learning and hear what God's doing in other people's lives. it helps me to be more aware of His presence. and it also helps me stay accountable with reading every day. this is the first time in my life i've been able consistently ready on a daily basis. and i'm realizing it's not always that deep, and that's okay. i think when you're consistent, God rewards it. consider it like a friendship. if you are roommates with someone, you're likely to see them almost every day. maybe you eat together and have some good conversations every now and then. but not every moment is action packed. there are some dull moments too. i think that's how God is with us too. He's there through it all, not just the movie script material. but when you are consistent with Him, you can get to such a deeper level. i think in the past my problem was that i always wanted that adrenaline rush that you get when someone comes to know the Lord. and when it wasn't there, i got discouraged and started picking at my life, thinking there was something wrong, a sin or something in the way between me and God. but really i think i just wasn't being intimate with Him. does that make sense?