Maui journal entry

A journal entry of the events on our third day in Maui...


26 September 2009

"Woke up. Surfing day. Today we will surf Lahaina.

"Ate breakfast at 7:30. They made oatmeal with fresh lilikoi. The lilikoi we picked yesterday was fresh. I ate leftover pizza from the high school youth group meeting last night. 2 cheese pizzas. Coffee was delicious.

"After breakfast did my devotional. God put Luke 9:62 on my heart. "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." He is continually stressing this call of missions on my life. I need to follow Him 100%. Turn from the past. Prayer was good. Asked for waves to surf.

"We loaded up the cars with the boards. All 10 boards. Drove to Lahaina. Had to stop a couple of times to fix the board straps. Got to Lahaina. Weather was beautiful. Surf was nice. We had 2 hours to surf. Jumped in the water. Got pummeled on the inside. Figured out the break. Got pummeled again. Caught a couple fun sets. some of the Swedes caught some nice waves.

"Came in for lunch. Ate under a large banyan tree. Had our bible study with some Hawaiian music playing in the background. Left to get some iced coffee. Coffee was very good. Put the boards back on the car. Drove back to Kihei. Put the boards away. Picked up Ellin. She stayed back cause she was sick. Prayed for her.

"Left for Paia. Drove on the sugar cane road. The air smelt really bad. Got to Paia. The town was really cool. Went to look at some waves at Hookipa, Maui's big wave spot. Waves were pretty big. I wouldn't have went out. The water was too cold and the current was too strong.

"Met a cool kid Hanalei. He hung out with us. We ate dinner at Paia town. We went around town to sticker slap Surfing the Nations stickers. Ate a spanikopita from Mana Market, a cool health food store. Ate my food with the girls at a crepe restaurant.

"Met a lady Gloria. We took her home to Kihei. Looked like she needed some love. Hung out at home. Funny how this seems like home now. Played guitar. Played drums. Drank warm spiced cider. Thank you Kat. Watched TV. Fell asleep. God was awesome all day. God is awesome always. Awesome day."

Surfing, Hiking, Thunderbirds, and God

This past weekend was filled with catching up with some needed time off and fun. Work here at STN is not intense work, nothing compared to a grueling day at the office, however it still takes a toll on me physically.

So we decided to adventure to Stairway to Heaven. Woke up at 3:30am and drove out to Haiku. Waking up early was worth it as we were treated with a beautiful sunrise. 90 minutes up, 60 minutes down and by 8:00am we were about ready to take a long nap. God is so awesome. The beauty in this world, the sunrises He paints every morning, the flowers He creates and how He places them in the highest mountain tops. Just being able to take it all in and enjoy it. Upplev den vackra naturen.


Sunday was an experience in itself. I spent most of the mid-day with the family. With the AAF Thunderbirds in town we were treated with a spectacle of aerial acrobatics and modern engineering. The capabilities of the pilots and the stunts that they were able to preform were amazing. I was in awe.

Then, midway through the aerial show, the funniest thing occurred. I was watching two of the solo pilots maneuver through the air climbing vertically at speeds beyond that of sound, then two sparrows flew in front of my face. The grace and intensity of their flight. The beauty and ferocity all in an animal weighing in no more than 100 grams. It was as if God was watching me amazed at technology created by man then all of a sudden was like, "you think that's amazing, then check this out! I made this with the snap of my finger. It can not only fly and dive at the same intensity of your F-16's, it can think for itself and only needs a few seeds to fuel itself." At that moment I was instantly humbled in awe of His awesomeness.

God is so great.

Surfing Bangladesh?

At the moment, I am not on my way to Bangladesh. A couple of things had not panned out as planned and as a result the Surfing Bangladesh team is leaving on the 18th without me. For good or for bad. It may not seem fair, how things turn out. I pictured everything turning out much differently. As I sit here, while the team prepares to go to Bangladesh, I'm only feeling like I am being left behind. There should have been something that I could have done more so that I could go. Why am I not going?

I took a look back at Ezekiel, "the Lord will judge you according to your own deeds." The people of Israel felt as if God had deserted and forsaken them. Every one of them felt like they were being judged unfairly. Yet God is always just. I need to trust that everything happens for a reason. That there is always a reason. I need to be thankful for everything that is in my life now.

Plan A: International visas go through as planned, and all of my flights are paid in full by the 18th. I set foot on a flight to Bangladesh. Return to Hawaii on October 22nd.

Plan B: International visas do not get approved. I remain in Hawaii working with Surfing the Nations. Fly to Maui on the inter-island outreach trip. Help to rebuild a church

Either way check out the video gum for my boat. It is a great documentary on the video circuit about the work that Surfing the Nations is doing in Bangladesh. This movie will be premiering in a number of film festivals and should be available to the public next year.

First work day

After a nice weekend off...back to work

In the Waianae coast there are numerous shelters for children and programs for at-risk-kids. STN has partnered up with one such organization. Teaching children to surf. Utilizing their innate talents and teaching them life skills at the same time. It's amazing to see the opportunities that are available to children these days, and it's even more amazing to be a part of it.

I don't remember how hard it was to learn how to surf. But teaching it brought it all back. The uncertainty of the water, the power of the waves, the endurance needed to paddle at every moment. It was so amazing to be able to impart some sort of wisdom, the little wisdom I have on surfing. It was even more amazing to see the looks on their faces after catching a wave. The utter joy surfing can to a person.

I look forward to heading back next week to continue our excellent surfing lessons, and I promise to bring better teaching skills.

Busy weekend

Moving in, meeting people, cooking food, learning Swedish, fixing surfboards, killing roaches...phew. This first weekend was busy (an understatement of the century). Moving in to the Ohai St apartments was an experience in itself. Surfing the Nations now resides in the heart of Wahiawa on one of the most dangerous streets in Oahu and now owns one of the oldest bars in Oahu.
Right off the bat, we were setting up for Uncle Tom's 60th birthday party. Tom Bauer, the co-founder of Surfing the Nations, is quite possibly the most down-to-earth man I have ever met. And putting together his surprise 60th birthday party was awesome.
Starting Tuesday, I begin serving with Feeding the Hungry. Feeding the Hungry is a great charity that provides the largest regular food distribution service on the island. It feels so great to be a part of something awesome.
Pictures and details to come.
Happy 60th Uncle Tom!!!