• Hi, I'm Brad Abare

  I'm a make-it-happen guy working with big idea people. I design teams and orchestrate strategy so that great ideas I believe in get done.
  
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Dear Family, Dear Friends
And To Those Who Care Not The Difference…

“With less of you there is more of God and his rule.” – Matthew 5:3b

“You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.” –Matthew 5:5

The journey for us really began in August of 2006 when we moved from “suburban” Arcadia, 22 miles southwest to downtown Los Angeles. It was one part convenience—Brad’s office is now three miles from home; one part investment—downtown LA is ten years away from becoming something; and one part missional—our hearts continue to turn toward the least, the lost and the left. Now, over one year later, our lives have been marked most by less.

Less Home
Not since our first three months of marriage have we lived in a space so small. Our new loft in downtown Los Angeles is small in dimension and in proximity. And it’s this proximity that has been the backdrop for our life of less. Our gated community with garage door seclusion has been replaced with outdoor pedestrians and shared elevator rides with neighborly strangers and strange neighbors. Our former neighborhood of social similarities has been replaced with businessmen, beggars and Hollywood hustlers. When we downsized our living space from 2,300 square feet to a one-room loft without walls, little did we know how much more we would experience because of how much less we have.

Home Less
In February we joined a home(less) group that is based out of Christian Assembly, the Foursquare church we’ve been a part of since 2003. Each week, seven of us gather at the Eagle Rock McDonald’s—a hub for the homeless—to spend some time, share some fries and just be with people who have little outside but lots inside. Because our loft is just four blocks from Skid Row, we see this time in Eagle Rock as preparation for what ministry to the homeless might look like in our own neighborhood.

Less-ons
In July, we had the opportunity to travel to Israel with the Foursquare family as a part of Brad’s job as he helped to run the annual convention. Following the spectacular event in Jerusalem, we got to travel throughout the country celebrating, learning and reflecting on stories of biblical proportion. We haven’t read the Bible the same since!

We had one day between when the convention ended and touring began so we decided to take an invitation to visit some Palestinian areas. We realize this wasn’t the “conventional” choice to make, but early one morning we boarded a Palestinian bus—no air conditioning and no departure until it was full—and made the twenty-five mile, two and a half hour ride through Bethlehem to Hebron. For safety reasons, we were advised to take a Palestinian bus there and an Israeli bus back. The Israeli bus back took 45 minutes. As we walked the streets of Hebron, we saw firsthand how the Palestinian people live with less. Palestinians are between a global rock and a hard place as they dangle like a pawn between Arab country politics and like a prisoner amidst their land-locked Israeli neighbor. Perhaps this discontent with less is one reason why so many Palestinian youth volunteer to be suicide bombers.

As we departed Israel, we were left with the evidence of Scripture that presents a view of the Jewish people as chosen by God to bring his kingdom on earth, and the contention by Arab believers that the state of Israel has acted unjustly on so many accounts. As Western Christians, we’re also left with the questions of how to separate Israel from the Jewish people and how to affirm the purposes of God for Israel while recognizing that the saving faith that made Abraham righteous is now faith in Christ.

More or Less
Jamaica continues to teach philosophy at three local colleges. The online and traditional classroom environments she teaches in help her students think deeply and purposefully. Although this is Jamaica’s third year of teaching, we feel a change coming. Law school has always been filed away in Jamaica’s mind and more recently it has surfaced again as a real possibility. We will be prayerfully considering this decision in 2008.

Brad celebrated five years at Foursquare this past November and his team of 15 continue to grow into a dynamic group of creative communicators. In addition to the convention in Israel, 2007 was consumed mostly by the communication needed for the Foursquare NextGen Summit taking place in Anaheim December 29-31.

After a really tough year, Personality is finally finding its stride. It’s taken nine years to get here but we’re finally seeing the light! For the last two years we’ve been developing a profile process that organizations can take to identify 21 powerful personality frames. If you’re familiar with StrengthsFinder, Myers Briggs or the DISC profile, it’s like that but for organizations. We’ve had the privilege of working with small businesses, established institutions (Penn State University) and nonprofits, giving them the confidence to communicate clearly.

The nonprofit Center for Church Communication brought Brad seven different invitations to speak this past year. CFCC, through its ChurchMarketingSucks.com, Church Marketing Lab, and Job and Freelance Labs continue to educate tens of thousands of pastors and leaders about communication and marketing.

But Wait, There’s Even Less…
This Christmas is one of the more radical departures we’ve made from traditional holiday experiences. Early in 2007 Brad’s family (mom, dad and five siblings) made a decision to give up Christmas presents and presence in exchange for a family missions trip to Haiti in January of 2008. Although originally intended as a onetime idea, it has sparked something deeper in us as we pursue a life of less. We’re really thinking through what it would look like to follow along the lines of the Advent Conspiracy. The absence of shopping this season has added a whole new dimension to our Christmastime. As Frank Lloyd Wright said, “Less is only more where more is no good.”

As we turn toward 2008, and just weeks away from our trip to Haiti, we remember this as a year of less. We are grateful to you as you continue to spur us on, as Paul exhorts us toward love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24).

With gratefulness,

Brad and Jamaica Abare
Los Angeles

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