Your new kitchen has no appliances, no cabinets, and doesn’t even have a sink!  Your home has no light fixtures or ceiling fans and there are wires dangling out of the wall in the place where a fan or fixture would normally be located.  The walls of your new home are all white, but dirty with use in many places from the previous tenants.  Your bathrooms have the most basic porcelain fixtures but lack counters, cabinets, and a mirror.  You finally make your way to the bedrooms and are reminded that your new home has no closets or any built in storage of any sort.

As unusual as this scene might be to the North American reader, this is the everyday reality of the starting condition of most purchased or rented apartments in Italy.  This is the exact place that we find ourselves with our newly rented abode.  Believe it or not, it does have its advantages.  You don’t have to deal with the stylistic or design choices of the previous owners/renters, as they took just about everything with them when they left.

While we are adjusting to what is normalcy here in Italy, we don’t feel at ease with this whole process as of yet.  In the span of a few weeks we’ve chosen paint colors and appliances, designed and ordered our kitchen, and are in the midst of furnishing the whole rest of our apartment from the ground up.  Not only have we been choosing the minute details of exactly what to put in our home, but we’ve been arranging and negotiating directly with all the various professionals who will do most of the installations for us.  Needless to say, it’s been a bit stressful for us.

The Lord has been our sustaining grace in this joyful yet stressful moving adventure.  We aren’t yet living in our apartment because there are simply too many missing pieces from the puzzle for it to support life as of yet.  We’ve had the blessing of being able to stay with family—Jason & Allyson Greenwich—and our colleagues in Sesto—Terrance & Hillary Luker—since leaving Bologna.  Most days, we just long to have all the dust settled and the freedom to move forward with life and ministry.  In the meantime, we simply entrust each detail in this thousand-piece-puzzle to our Sovereign and Omniscient Father.  This apartment will be our home, office, and place of ministry, but it is ultimately His to use as He desires according to His good pleasure…

I first talked to David Millet in a 30 minute phone interview in 2005 when I was finishing up two years in Milan serving as a missionary to university students.  I was planning to attend Dallas Seminary that fall and I really needed a job to pay the bills.  Our dear mutual friend Pete Charpentier had just introduced us via email.  David, with his big heart and a recommendation from Pete, hired me sight unseen before I had even left Italy to come to Dallas.  Not only did David hire me to be his personal assistant at Millet the Printer, but he also gave me a place to live in his backhouse for my first 3 semesters of seminary—without cost!

Little did I know that my future boss would also become my very dear friend.  I watched and learned from David’s zealous commitment to always do right by his customers, his incredibly generous heart to support the Lord’s Kingdom work around the globe, and his commitment to serve and take care of his family.  David was the hands and feet of Christ to me and so many others over the years.  He ministered to me more than he ever knew.  We also all knew David to be a passionate promoter of even the simplest things that he loved—from his favorite restaurants to the latest dietary supplement that he was trying.

I am so grateful that David Millet believed in me and the plan God had for me.  My life has been forever changed by the impact of the six years that I was blessed to spend with him.  I will never go to places like Celebration Restaurant, Spiral Diner, and Dream Café without thinking fondly of David.  I thank God for the privilege it was to call David Millet my friend on this side of eternity and I cannot wait to be reunited with him in fellowship in the presence of our Lord Jesus in glory!

–David Showalter, Bologna, Italy

A fun but silly example of how things can get lost in translation is the difference between how you express “I love you” in English and Italian.   In English, we throw “I love” around haphazardly to describe our affinity for steak, a beautiful dress, a new car, family members, and our God.  However, in Italian, there is typically great differentiation between the ways that you express affinity for each of these things.  The literal “I love” in Italian is “io amo” and would typically be reserved only for a spouse or for God.  To express “I love” to a family member or close friend in Italian a “voglio bene” construction is used—which literally means “I want [you, he, she, them] well.”  Finally, to say “I love” in Italian regarding an inanimate object—this delicious steak, your dress, my new car—a completely different construction is used.  We like the distinctions in Italian, as it gives us pause to ponder the vast difference between our “love” for objects and our love for each other and our Lord.

While on a slightly diverse level, Jana and I find ourselves struggling to adequately communicate our feelings and affections in our adopted language of Italian.  Imagine trying to explain the deep things of the heart or significant spiritual truths in your second language—they are hard enough to formulate into words in English!  Our most challenging conversations are those that involve fleshing out the invisible realities of the heart and the spiritual realms.  However, we’re excited about getting better and better at verbalizing and incarnating the inner transformation that we have experienced by faith in Jesus in a way that speaks to the perceived needs of the Italian heart.

The truth of the gospel never changes but the way we present it in different contexts should and must if we want to convey what we know to be unfathomably good news in a way that will be received as such.  In simple words: What are the itches of the Italian heart that need scratching?  These itches are the precious bridges that we’ll use to deliver the good news in a way that convicts the hearers of their desperate need for Jesus and points them to faith.  Obviously, we aren’t looking for a silver bullet technique, as the Father alone can draw the lost and the Spirit alone can convict them.  However, we want to best use the cultural resources at our disposal that we might collaborate with Him as He works to bring in His harvest in Italy…

How many times have I thanked God for wisely saying ‘no’ to certain fervent prayers?  How often have I worshipped Him for graciously slamming a door shut before me that seemed to be the perfect path forward?  How frequently have I bowed before the Lord to honor Him for mercifully taking away something that appeared to be ideal for me?  How regularly have I displayed a heart of joyful thanksgiving to God for sovereignly bringing into my life painful changes that were later transformational?

Rarely, if ever.

This week, the Spirit has led me to ponder the breadth of unconventional blessings that I’ve received from the Father in the form of many ‘no’ responses, slammed doors, things taken away, and painful changes.  How much heartbreak, needless suffering, and time wasting was avoided by His kind—yet unwelcome at the time—intervention?  How many new opportunities, relationships, and open doors would have been unrealized had it not been for His infinite wisdom acting to override my self-indulgent will?

Please know that not for even a moment would I suggest that our thanksgiving for material things is misplaced—heavens no!  We are indescribably blessed in the western world.  Even the poorest of the poor in first world countries has better access to basic necessities than the average person in many lands; but, I’m certain that is no new news to you.  My prayer is not that we would cease to thank Him continually for our running water, hot cups of coffee, healthy families, or gas for our car(s), but that we might begin to be thankful unconventionally, too.

Nonetheless, our new normal in Italy is filled with countless blessings, opportunities, and joys.  It offers untold adventures of discovery, a cornucopia of new relationships to build, and rich vistas of faith as we trust the Lord in the midst of it all.  However, coupled with the blessings are the bereavements that change brings.  I don’t think that I’m going out on a limb to say that most of us deal better with the blessings than the bereavements of change!  Why is it that our flesh so militantly resists change?  Perhaps it isn’t change itself that the flesh resists but actually changing itself…

Yes, we’re adjusting to the new normal; but I’m not sure that I can wrap my mind around or describe in a few paragraphs all that it entails.  However, some wise colleagues of ours have challenged us to view the perceived delays, frustrations, and hardships of our adopted culture in light of the fact that they are the new normal.  Thus, the Italian way of doing things isn’t bad; it’s just different.  This isn’t some pie-in-the-sky, self-delusional, mind-over-matter scheme to convince ourselves that certain circumstances are better than they actually are.  In fact, it’s a much healthier embrace-it-for-what-it-is approach that calls us to receive—read embrace—all of the circumstances of our new environment as a part of the life that our Sovereign God has called us to in Italy.

For those of you who might be worried that we’re tattooing on fake smiles for times when we’re not feeling it—please don’t!  On the contrary, we’re choosing to see the thrilling things and frustrating things alike as provision—grace gifts—from the Lord as fodder for His furnace to make us more like the Son.  Instead of complaining and comparing, we desire to adjust and learn to appreciate.  Instead of fixating on the wait, we desire to reclaim the time.  Have we arrived?  Not hardly.  However, the Spirit daily molds us into greater lovers of this land and its people.  He daily develops our heart to make disciples among the 99% of modern Italians who are living outside the grace and glory of a personal relationship by faith with the Living God through Jesus Christ.

Where do all the people go??  Good question.  Many people go to the coast or to the mountains, some go out of the country to other European coastal destinations, but *I think* most people visit family in the small towns.  The point is just to get out of the city and have some sort of retreat for the mind/soul.

The 15^th of August is the holiday celebrating the month for vacation–known as Ferragosto.  *I love Italy*  So, even if you don’t take a vacation in August, you’ll at least have ONE long weekend to escape the busy city life.

We were so blessed to be invited by Italian friends from church to join them in their vacation over the weekend of the 15^th.  We went to a small town of 300 people called Pietragavina.  The region where it is located is famous for their salami.  Mmmmm.  It is a BEATIFUL town on a hill that embodies how I envisioned small-town Italy prior to coming to this country.  I would never do it justice describing it with my words, so I’ll include some pictures.

We spent a wonderful couple of days with friends from church and felt so welcomed and loved.  For me personally, it was a special time of bonding with some other Christian women.  Of course I look forward to more bonding when language isn’t quite as big of a barrier, but it was still so good to connect on some level to someone other than my husband.  I love David, but he’s not a girl.  It was so nice to see some things that are universal among women: talking about hairstyles, shaving legs, matchmaking, etc., but also to soak in and realize some of the differences.

We both came back from the weekend refreshed and encouraged.  Afterwards we were able to understand a *little* better the concept of August as the vacation month.

This first week we have focused on gaining our bearings around the neighborhood/city, the mass transportation system, and starting the process of obtaining our long-term documents.  We have ventured out each day on ‘field trips’ and have enjoyed some delicious meals with friends.

It’s been a smooth and enjoyable transition thus far. Though some things are very different and will take some getting used to, it’s fascinating to observe and learn how Italians live. For the first six weeks we are in Italy, we’re staying in my (Jana) brother’s apartment in Milan while he and his family are stateside for the summer.  Starting in August, we’ll begin language school—one month in Milan and then the rest in Bologna (6-9 months).  I cannot wait to be able to communicate with people! Thankfully, David speaks well and I have been able to understand some of what is said.

I thought I’d share about our day today to bring you into our experience of adapting to life in Italy….

This morning I began a load of laundry at 9am (which takes about 2 hours to wash) then hung the clothes out to dry on the balcony. Then I swept the house which is mostly wood or tile of some sort. The mornings and evenings are cool and pleasant, but the afternoons are warm (HOT in David’s words). Since there is no AC in our apartment, we leave the windows open all the time. We hear the sounds of the neighbors, the street traffic, and the construction across the street where they are putting in a new subway—I think.

At about noon we left for Sesto Calende where the Lukers (fellow CrossWorld missionaries) live. They offered to help us go to the Comune (city offices) to fill out our application for long-term documents. This trip included hopping on a bus, getting on two subways, and boarding a train to Sesto. We arrived two hours later (normally a 40 min. drive) and went to the Comune.  There we were told that we were at the wrong place and we needed to go to another office that is only open on Mondays. We had waited to go to Sesto today because THIS Comune was only open on Thursday afternoons. So, we went with Terrance Luker to the “bar” and drank coffee together.  In order not to have a wasted trip to Sesto, we decided to go to the store and get a cell phone for me (Jana). We quickly learned that we cannot get a contract for a phone until we have an Italian credit card. We cannot get a credit card until we have an Italian bank account, which we cannot have until we have our equivalent to a social security number, which we can’t obtain until we have our long-term documents

So, we embarked on our two-hour trek home. While at the bus stop, we struck up a conversation with an Italian guy and found out he is a fellow believer! We were so encouraged to talk to him. We got home, ate dinner, folded the laundry, and realized it was time for bed. We will give it another try tomorrow—or Monday.

While I am tempted to be frustrated with the system and bureaucracy, I realize that it is quite a blessing that in a couple months I should be able to have all the above mentioned things (bank account, social, residency, phone contract etc).  It may take several hours of public transportation and waiting in lines, but we’ll most likely be completely settled in a matter of weeks!  I don’t even think it’s that easy for immigrants to the US!

We feel blessed to learn snippets of Italian culture through this document process, and thankful because we know God will grant us all that we need in His timing.

Here are some fun things I LOVE about Italy so far:

• Being able to function just fine and getting around the city without a car. Lesson learned: wear comfortable shoes!
• Delicious produce!  Everything fresh seems to have so much flavor.  At the grocery store, people are required to wear a disposable glove when picking through the produce.
• People are always out and about walking
• Coffee!!
• The month of August is THE month when everyone takes vacation. The small businesses will all close down and the public transportation schedule changes in preparation for a month of slow activity in Milan.

…More to come as we learn new things each day!!!

Don’t get me wrong, it was very hard for us to walk through the security line at the airport in New Orleans after saying goodbye to my parents and just as difficult the week before leaving Jana’s folks in Arkansas.  Likewise, it was incredibly special to have our CrossWorld colleagues at the airport to meet us on this side of the pond!  I know that it will similarly thrill my heart to see precious Italian friends at church on Sunday after so many years of absence.  However, the actual journey and now our first days in Italy are the beginning of what He desires to be “a long obedience in the same direction” (al la Eugene Peterson).  Yes, there will be breathtaking highs and gut-wrenching lows—our colleagues have assured us—but that isn’t where the mettle of His ministry is worked out (here or anywhere else in the world).  He is calling us to a daily desperate dependence—a moment-by-moment intimate love affair with Himself.  That is where His transforming power is worked into our lives and His glory is subsequently worked out for the world to see…

Perhaps I read too many missionary biographies in seminary—stories of somber saints who said goodbye to their loved ones, packed their lives into their own coffins, and sailed to a far-away place with no intention of ever returning.  Yes, those were definitely inspiring stories with truth to speak into my journey.  Yet, as I sit here this morning with the sleepy-eyed glaze of jet-lag about me, I’m struck with the fact that He doesn’t want me to begin today with the end in sight.  What?  He isn’t so concerned with the results, although we pray they come.  Really?  He wants me to begin today and every moment of every day with His Son in sight—striving for faithfulness and obedience in Him—and trusting any potential results to His care.

Nonetheless, our new normal in Italy is filled with countless blessings, opportunities, and joys.  It offers untold adventures of discovery, a cornucopia of new relationships to build, and rich vistas of faith as we trust the Lord in the midst of it all.  However, coupled with the blessings are the bereavements that change brings.  I don’t think that I’m going out on a limb to say that most of us deal better with the blessings than the bereavements of change!  Why is it that our flesh so militantly resists change?  Perhaps it isn’t change itself that the flesh resists but actually changing itself…

Yes, we’re adjusting to the new normal.  I’m not sure that I can wrap my mind around or describe in a few paragraphs all that it entails.  However, some wise colleagues of ours have challenged us to view the perceived delays, frustrations, and hardships of our adopted culture in light of the fact that they are the new normal.  Thus, the Italian way of doing things isn’t bad; it’s just different.  This isn’t some pie-in-the-sky, self-delusional, mind-over-matter scheme to convince ourselves that certain circumstances are better than they actually are.  In fact, it’s a much healthier embrace-it-for-what-it-is approach that calls us to receive—read embrace—all of the circumstances of our new environment as a part of the life that our Sovereign God has called us to in Italy.

For those of you who might be worried that we’re tattooing on fake smiles for times when we’re not feeling it—please don’t!  On the contrary, we’re choosing to see the thrilling things and frustrating things alike as provision—grace gifts—from the Lord as fodder for His furnace to make us more like the Son.  Instead of complaining and comparing, we desire to adjust and learn to appreciate.  Instead of fixating on the wait, we desire to reclaim the time.  Have we arrived?  Not hardly.  However, the Spirit daily molds us into greater lovers of this land and its people.  He daily develops our heart to make disciples among the 99% of modern Italians who are living outside the grace and glory of a personal relationship by faith with the Living God through Jesus Christ.

“I am part of the ‘Fellowship of the Unashamed.’ I have Holy Spirit power. The dye has been cast. I’ve stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of His. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions, mundane talking, chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don’t have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by his presence, lean by faith, love by patience, live by prayer, and labor by power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal in heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few, my guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, diluted, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of compromise, pander at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won’t give up, shut up, let up, or slow up until I’ve preached up, prayed up, paid up, stored up, and stayed up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go until he comes, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until he stops. And when he comes to get his own, he’ll have no problems recognizing me—my colors will be clear.”