http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org World Race 2007 The Adventures of Andrew Maas - Changing Perspectives en-us Thu, 24 Jul 2008 11:36:54 GMT 30 http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=memoirs-of-a-semi-content-exracer http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=memoirs-of-a-semi-content-exracer I sit down on my couch and turn on my TV. I lift up my bowl of granola and yogurt, while sipping down my freshly made smoothie of ice, fruit and juice. I can't help but think to myself, this is nice. I am comfortable. I don't have anywhere to be; I have nowhere to go. I prop up my computer; check my email, and for some reason mosey on over to the world race blogs. To be honest for 3 months I have all but avoided them, not because I don't care, but simply because I can't read them. There is som Fri, 18 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=home-and-searching-for-whats-next http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=home-and-searching-for-whats-next Hey all I have been home now for nearly a month.  We finished up in China and had a wonderful time there of working with different students and making friends.  It was a wonderful experience of culture and learning more about the chinese church and what is going on there.  Since being home I have been through an array of emotions. I have been extremely down and depressed, wondering whats next.  Dealing with the loss of so many friendships and the low of no more anticipation Mon, 17 Dec 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=finishing-up-cambodia-heading-to-china http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=finishing-up-cambodia-heading-to-china The time has come to once again move on from another country.  Cambodia was a pretty stable month for me nothing to great and nothing to hard to work through.   Our ministry for the most part was working with the university students doing bible studies every night of the week.  On the weekends we got the chance to head out into rural cambodia to visit different projects and churches out there.  It was a great chance to bond with the guys we had been working with all mont Wed, 10 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=seriously-looking-for-answers-in-vietnam http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=seriously-looking-for-answers-in-vietnam We have been in Vietnam for a day now.  We came here from cambodia on a visa renewal trip.  We were so close to Vietnam we thought we would come check it out.  Today we went for a boat cruise on the Mekong river.  We saw the river and the way a lot of the people live and make money.  On the way back from the trip I ended up sitting by a local vietmanese guy.  He was 23 and a tour guide.  He had led a tour with one of the other groups, but he was riding home w Tue, 25 Sep 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=cambodia-update http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=cambodia-update We have been in Cambodia now for a couple of weeks.  We are working with a ministry called Hope Education Center.  Hope Education Center was started by Pastor Chay.  He felt God calling him to open up a dorm for people that were in financial need.  He now has over 100 students that live in his giant house.  Every night of the week there is some sort of opportunity for the students to grow spiritually.  A large majority of the students here are not Christians.&nb Mon, 17 Sep 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=getting-sent-to-a-thailand-prison http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=getting-sent-to-a-thailand-prison I cringed as the big metal doors slammed behind me.  The guard was silent as he led me down a dark hall to another set of doors.  The door was covered in locks.  I knew this was there to keep people inside and would by no means be an easy attempt at ever escaping.  What had I done to get here?  I sure have made some stupid mistakes, but prison? I was not a hardened criminal I didn't belong here.  I kept telling myself, but reality was I was there and there w Wed, 22 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=video-menistry-part-1 http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=video-menistry-part-1 Wed, 22 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=menistry-into-manistry-atling-it-in-bangkok http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=menistry-into-manistry-atling-it-in-bangkok I stepped off the bus and the heat and smell of the metropolis surrounded me. I stepped off into the smells and the sounds of a major metropolis. I was in Bangkok this time Alone. I left Man time, because for starters I really felt the Lord calling me to go to Bangkok and just trust in Him to get me a place to stay and a contact to do ministry with. We prayed about it as a group and despite most of the guys feeling not real great about the idea. We all decided that we would pray and lea Fri, 17 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=menistry-part-1-goat-wranglin-tree-cutting-and-brush-clearin http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=menistry-part-1-goat-wranglin-tree-cutting-and-brush-clearin We have officially begun what will be forever known as Menistry week.  For two weeks 5 of the strongest most daring guys will convene upon Katchinaburi to do what men do.  It is Jimmy from 61 Eric and Jake from Agapatos and James and myself from Salt.  And we are all prepared to do Hard Manual Labor.  We are working with a new Ywam base.  Youth with a mission in case anyone was wondering.  It is run by a Thai couple.  Arun grew up in this village moved to b Sun, 12 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=asia-at-last http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=asia-at-last We are in Thailand!!!  We are getting ready to do some ministry here in the great kingdom of Thailand.  We are splitting up from the girls for the month here.  The girls are going to be working in the city of Bangkok doing some prostitute ministry and James and I are joining up with Jimmy, Jake and Eric Hansen to head out into the jungle to help with a church plant and construction projects.  I am really excited about the upcoming Sun, 5 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=despite-frustrations-still-being-able-to-come-alive http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=despite-frustrations-still-being-able-to-come-alive "Lord, we pray that you would take us to the church you would have us go to today." We decided to go to a new town down the road to see if there was a church going on.  We had no idea where the church was or if they had a service, but we were ready to find out.  we pulled into the outer parts of the town of Nsubane.  We saw a lady walking carrying a child on her back and another one walking beside her. "Would you like a ride?" I asked her as I wound down my window Thu, 26 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=video-grapefruit-ministry http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=video-grapefruit-ministry Tue, 24 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=being-a-missionary-doesnt-make-you-closer-to-god-it-just-makes-you-farther-from-home http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=being-a-missionary-doesnt-make-you-closer-to-god-it-just-makes-you-farther-from-home Well our time in Swaziland as far as ministry goes has come to an end.  I brought back half of the group this morning and the other half should be arriving soon.  It has been a month of ups and downs.  It has had its moments of unbelief and its moments of "Get me outta here." One thing that I have really learned this month and over the last 7 months is that being a missionary doesn't not at all make one more spiritual.  There is no magical formula that the second yo Tue, 24 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=swaziland-ministry-video http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=swaziland-ministry-video Sat, 21 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-great-adventure-part-4-lubombo-mt-hike http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-great-adventure-part-4-lubombo-mt-hike Sat, 21 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=not-what-i-had-planned-but-ill-take-it http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=not-what-i-had-planned-but-ill-take-it The day started out in the usual way.   Chasing thoughts inside my head of what I ought to do today.   The plan was for me and a June Racer to take a young girl with a foot infection to the hospital.   The information we got was not entirely accurate and so by the time we got the girl and I called to find out where to take her I realized it was a lot farther then I had planned.   Actually about an hour and a half farther than I had Sat, 14 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=swaziland-update http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=swaziland-update Things have been moving along great. Our team along with Lego from the June racers have been working hard at setting up the Carepoints. We have mainly been focusing on two Carepoints we have named field of dreams and school house. Field of dreams or Mubtfu which is the community where it is located we have been doing childrens programs in the morning and teen programs in the afternoon. We are in the process of moving the property a little ways down the road to a location owned by one of the Wed, 11 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=video-one-way-to-pull-a-boat-in-mozambique http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=video-one-way-to-pull-a-boat-in-mozambique Fri, 29 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-great-adventure-part-3-canopy-ziplining http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-great-adventure-part-3-canopy-ziplining Fri, 29 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=video-muffin-contest-andrew-vs-talia http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=video-muffin-contest-andrew-vs-talia Fri, 29 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-semiconfused-racer-part-2 http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-semiconfused-racer-part-2 We have been out at the carepoints, or Orphanages for about a week. I would have to say that my attitude has not been 100% it is hard feeling the burden of all that needs to be done and trying to see the possibilities and not all the problems. Before we left Gary told us that he needed us to be the Joshua and Calebs. The people that would go and scout out the area and come back with good reports. To come back with the answers to how to accomplish the goals. I am now starting to come aroun Mon, 25 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-confused-racer-part-1 http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-confused-racer-part-1 We stepped out of the van and were immediately bombarded with thoughts of unbelief. Our surroundings were a chain link fenced building with a small fire and a small pot cooking something over it. As we begin to find out from our contact that we were dealing with. He told us that there were around 95 kids some of which haven't eaten in weeks. The go-go's as they are called are grandma's that cook for the kids. They said they get a shipment of food once a month, Sometimes. There were kids runn Thu, 14 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-reunited-racer http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-reunited-racer Well I am back in Swaziland, but this time it is a little different.  The same house that once made me feel so lonesome is now on the verge of making me crazy well not really, but it is full of a lot of people only to have more people come in the next couple of days.  But I have to admit it is a nice change. I arrived in Mozambique last wednesday.  My family AKA team Salt picked me up at the airport along with Clinton.  It was a bittersweet reunion.  I was more th Fri, 1 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-lonesome-racer-pt-3 http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-lonesome-racer-pt-3 Hello everyone, Well I am still here in Swaziland as it turned out they are willing to let me go to Mozambique but the original plan was to fly me up there and the airline stopped flying up there because of the tornado that came through and they feel the bus is to dangerous. So in Swazi I will stay. I just wanted to clarify more of what is going on because I think there might be some confusion. Which would more likely be my fault since I am the one explaining it. A lot of that had Mon, 21 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=time-to-move-on http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=time-to-move-on The Lonesome racer Chronicles have come to an end.  I am getting on a bus tommorrow which will be tuesday to head back to South Africa and then I will catch a plane up to Mozambique to be with the rest of my team.  I am blessed beyond measure to have this opportunity and thank my team for offering to pay for the ticket.  It is amazing how huge grace is.  It is amazing how even when we screw up people still offer us love and even more so with God.  I will not take Mon, 21 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-lonesome-racer-pt-2 http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-lonesome-racer-pt-2 These past few days have been some of the most challenging in my life. For a couple of reasons. One being I don't know what my future holds. I know I have made selfish desicions that could have the consequences of me getting sent home. I will not try and blame anyone else for where I am at. For a long time I tried to. But last night Gary had me give his family and some friends a little sermon on what it means to be humble and to serve and sacrifice. In the process of reading the bible Wed, 16 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-lonesome-racer-pt-1 http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=chronicles-of-a-lonesome-racer-pt-1 Last night I arrived into Swaziland, one of the only Kingdoms left in the world which is pretty fascinating in its own right. I drove in with Collin and Kathy two seasoned missionaries who have been in Botwana for a long time, but are now going to be running a mission base for Aim for all of Africa here in Swazi. We moved a lot of their belongings up from South Africa into a large guest house that Aim has for an intern house. They are now gone. I am now alone in a huge guest house Sun, 13 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=where-is-everybody http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=where-is-everybody Well when i arose this morning from a deep slumber.  I realized at 7 aclock when I woke up that all my team was gone. All their belongings were gone and in fact all the world racers were on their way out of South Africa, minus something, ME!  It was a little hard this morning knowing that my family that I have come to spend my life with for the past 4 months are now gone. And that I was left alone.  They are all on a long and I mean long bus ride to Mozambique while Thu, 10 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=race-day-johannesburg-south-africa http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=race-day-johannesburg-south-africa We have arrived in South Africa via london stopover for 12 hours which was pretty fun.  We got to see most of the sights and see what London was like. Race Day found us leaving our base and getting a ride to Pretoria the capital city.  We all got dropped off at a large monument and were given our first clue.  We had to get a sentence translated from Afrikaans to English.  The translation told us to go to the union building which was quite a ways down the street.  We t Tue, 8 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=from-one-extreme-to-another http://andrewmaas.theworldrace.org/?filename=from-one-extreme-to-another We have arrived in Buenos Aires and been here for a couple of days.  I am sorry I have no more pictures of Peru.  My bag carrying my camera, mp3 player, bible, journal with a story I had been writing for the whole month of peru and finally finished, but never read it, sandals, hat, and clothes.  Got taken while we were out to eat and so I lost all my pictures from the trip thus far.  But I got a new camera now so I there will be more fun times with pics and hopefully some Sun, 29 Apr 2007 00:00:00 GMT