JESUS CHRISTIANS NEWSLETTER, #123, MAY, 2010
We Jesus Christians have gone from distributing more than 10,000 books and DVDs a week less than a year ago, to doing very little distributing this month, as our interests have turned to other projects... some of them quite exciting.
RETREAT HIDEAWAY
In Australia, Dave, Cherry, Paul, Ulrike, Ross, and Barry have been busily scouting out and preparing a secret retreat, where members of the community can get together for fun, fellowship, and a lot of work during the upcoming international reunion. One of the main projects being planned is a huge video production program, during which we hope to put together footage for two feature films as well as a short documentary on life in Kenya.
In preparation for that same project, cameras have been busily filming interviews and other material in Kenya, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.A.
CAVE DWELLING
One U.S. team ventured into the wilderness of Utah to spend a few days with "No Currency Man", our good friend Suelo, who lives in a cave there, and who has recently been experiencing a flood of interest from the media as well as visits from others of like mind. People with similar interest have joined him in starting a volunteer farm close to the cave. Suelo has been living without money for ten years now.
Jesse and Jayme spent a night in the now famous cave, and did a number of interviews for the "Mark of the Beast" video, both with Suelo himself and with some of the volunteers there.
Suelo's blogspot: [
zerocurrency.blogspot.com]
NEW MONEYLESS BOOK
Mark Boyle, who is a friend of Suelo's and who made a significant contribution to our "Mark of the Beast" video, has a new book coming out in a few weeks time. Mark's book, "The Moneyless Man" explores his first year living without money and the aims of the Freeconomy Movement that is quickly gaining momentum around the world. To find out more, check out Mark's recent blog at: [
www.justfortheloveofit.org].
FREE WORKERS
On the way back to Los Angeles, the guys interviewed a couple who had lost their home in the current economic downturn. Instead of letting the crisis destroy their spirit, they decided to take the loss as liberation from attachment to material possessions. They have downsized to a motorhome and are travelling around offering their services for free. They hope to insipre other people to learn to use their time to help others. Their website is: [
www.zenarmy.org]
VISITING FAMILIES AND FRIENDS
There have been a lot of visits both to and from families and friends over the month. Karl went with Bob and Alf to visit his family in Kenya. Karl's father expressed appreciation for the growth Karl has made since becoming a volunteer, and he wished us all continued success.
There were several trips to Nairobi during the month, where we were able to meet up with some former volunteers from Finland, as well as spending time with Casey, who is continuing to make progress with his adopt-a-patient program at the hospital there. The program aims to link up visitors with patients who rarely if ever get visits.
Karl, Alf, and Bob visited Antony, a fellow volunteer who is spearheading a lot of volunteer programs in his local area. We also had a visit from Collins, who is in the process of developing a volunteer program close to the forest, where he lives.
Over in the United Kingdom, we had a couple from Dorchester stay with us for a few days, and two sisters from Germany spend two and a half weeks with us in Newquay. A friendly Welshman traveled all the way from Swansea to Bath to meet up with us. Roland and Sue had dinner with Kirstie and her husband, and we were invited to dinner with contacts in Lands End and London. We also spent a sunny afternoon with Dave, a former volunteer from Takatifu Gardens (and a 'Werewolf' expert) who has been playing the song "Money Made Man Mad" all over France. The song has become especially popular at the ski resort where Dave works in the Alps.
GREAT PROVISIONS
As the weather started to warm up in England, God provided the team there with a bin full of semi-frozen ice-cream. After a nice holiday break at Newquay, which is famous for its beaches and surfing, they came across enough discarded veggie oil to fuel their three vehicles on the journey back to London.
RUN, RUN, RUN!
Alf, Bob, Joe, Karl, and Obed have taken to Friday afternoon runs to the forest and back in Kenya. Apart from the fitness benefits, it has also offered an opportunity to view the beautiful countryside along the way.
In England, morning runs along Fistral Beach became part of the daily routine while everyone was staying in Newquay.
Our aged and crippled members in Australia have been venturing into a little more exercise lately, with Barry and Dave both doing a few laps. Ulrike, who has been out for some time due to an ankle injury, is now regularly doing six laps each week, in hopes of re-joining the regular two-mile phantom run competitions in a couple of weeks. Ross is the only member of the six-person team who has soldiered on without injuries over the past few months.
COINCIDENCES?
George, a surf life saver in England, got one of our DVD's in Somerset, took it home and watched it straight away. He then went to a town in North West Cornwall, which just happened to be the same town that Simon and Sue were distributing in that day. Then a few days later George met Roland distributing in Newquay, further down the coast. The team had some good fellowship with him, including an outing to raid bins. George eagerly showed the DVD to friends, as well as sharing bin-raided goodies with fellow Newquay surf life savers.
A SHEEP NAMED BOB
One Kenyan teacher (Rosemary) won a sheep for her participation in our reading program at Lugala Primary School, which ended this month. By switching our emphasis over to intensive use of the flashcards, we found that there was a 50% increase in the improvement rate at this school over what we have seen in previous schools. Rosemary has dubbed the sheep 'Bob' in recognition of Bob's leadership of the program there.
OTHER KENYAN PROJECTS
Rob has installed a new solar hot water system on the hall side of the compound, and Christine has made further progress with the disposable sanitary pad project. All the rooms (including the floors) have now been (finally!) painted, with the hall and the kitchen done last.
SAN DIEGO OUTREACH
The Los Angeles team finally managed to escape the various business needs that have kept them in Greater Los Angeles for more than a year, to make a brief outreach down south to San Diego (including a venture across the border). They were joined on the trip by a young woman named April, who came to experience a taste of our lifestyle.
NEW ARTICLES
There is a new article about government, and how to deal with problems that come from consensus decision-making, called "When Consensus Prevents Us". You can read it here:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH BOBBY KELLY
An exclusive interview with Bobby Kelly, who we had been accused of kidnapping ten years ago, is now up on our web page. Listen to Bobby give an account of what happened from his own perspective and learn about what he went through even after the media hype had blown over. You can access that video directly here: [
jesus-teachings.com]
JOE'S STORY
Joe has finished writing and uploading a detailed account of what happened when he decided to become a Jesus Christian. This facinating story includes details about the horrendous attack on Reinhard's life, the controversial whipping trial, and Joe's family's response to it all. Read this account here: [
jesus-teachings.com]
THE FORUM
Some new issues discussed this month:
Slavery and the right to revolt:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
Universities and debt:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
Could we survive without money?
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
The article that started the 'killers for Christ' lie:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
A new approach to birthdays:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
What makes a party 'a party':
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
Consequences:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
What to do while waiting for Jesus:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
Michael, the Archangel:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
Mental Health:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
Believers who are not JCs:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]
Advice on Bin Raiding:
[
www.jesus-teachings.com]