Mayan Temples: Palenque, Mexico and the End of the World

Before the world ends on December 21, 2012, I thought it might be a good idea to get a last few of the "1,000 things to do before I die" out of the way.

Looks like I will be headed to the Mayan temples in Palenque, Mexico for an End of the World Rainbow Gathering. Jinkies! That nails four in one fell swoop. Maybe five, because I will have to fly into Cancun (although I am less sure Cancun makes my list), and it will definitely cover six if I get to ride on a bus with chickens!

So here are the four "1,000 things to do before I die" that will be covered in the trip to Palenque:

1. Visit the Mayan Temples
2. Go to a Rainbow Gathering
3. Go Jungle Camping
4. Visit an apocalyptic hot-site on the anticipation moment with a bunch of believers in the event

Now, as in all things I do like this, it is not just fun and games. In fact, I always work my little-bit-larger-than-it-used-to-be pastor's bottom off during these events. I and my Burning Man buddy Jeff will be joining Cate Moon, Shlomy Goldman and a team from around the US to create God encounters at the Rainbow Gathering near Palenque.

100,000 people are expected to converge on the Mayan Temple site during the days of the end of the Mayan Calendar, and it is our goal to be a transformative grace during these days. I am sure there are few people who will wonder if the world might really end, but far greater numbers will be expecting some kind of new age transformation to occur on this Winter Solstice and the End of the Mayan calendrical cycle. It is for those people who anticipate something great to occur on a calender date that I want to be there. Most anticipated moments of global transformation turn out to be a bust, and at the end of the day people go home to find that their cat is mad that they left for so long, their spouse is still arguing with them, the kids are still unruly, the bills are still unpaid, and it is as difficult to find a job as it was before the day of great change occurred. Transformation can be a miraculous event, but it is God driven, and not calendar driven. It is sometimes a slow work of grace, and walking with God daily, and not the moment of standing in front of an ancient temple.

Is this to say we don't believe in miracles? No. It is to say that miracles are often more illusive than the one time events on our calendar. They surprise us in the night, and sometimes attach themselves to spiritual disciplines in our daily planner.

So, in honor of helping people discover these simple truths, I am going missional adventuring once again. If you would like to help support this mission in some small way you can visit The Gathering website and donate to the Palenque, End of the World Encounter. The people of our world are running to places of excitement, and looking for guidance in events and moments such as this. Through these festival gatherings we are hoping to help the world one thought, one loving interaction, one encounter with Christ, and one crazy carnival at a time.

More posts on each of the four to six "1,000 things to do before I die" to come. Perhaps you would like to join a team of missional adventurers. If so, let me know.