Journal Writer:  David Robison
Trek City: Mexico City

Journal Entries:
June 21, 2001
June 22, 2001
June 23, 2001
June 26, 2001
June 27, 2001
June 28, 2001
June 28, 2001, evening
June 28, 2001, late at night 
July 2, 2001
July 3, 2001
July 6, 2001               July 19, 2001
July 7, 2001               July 20, 2001
July 9, 2001               July 22, 2001 morning
July 11, 2001             July 22, 2001 evening
July 13, 2001             July 23, 2001

Trek City: Mexico City

Meet the rest of Team Mexico City

THE SCOOP ON DAVID:
"I know that God is calling me to be a missionary," says David, "and I want to answer that call, going wherever He sends me. But I don't yet know where I will be going, what I will be doing, or even when I will start. This point in my life is about listening and learning. And that's how I see the Global Urban Trek -- for me, it would be a time of listening to God, and learning about the needs of the urban poor." 

David comes from a large, loving family, and his gifts and interests reflect it. He loves people, especially children, and strives to be present to others. "Whenever I have an opportunity," he continues, "I love to give a word of comfort or challenge to a brother or sister in Christ. I have had many opportunities to counsel and encourage others, to strengthen younger believers in their faith. Of course, I am not perfect, and in times of weakness, I am the one in need of counsel, encouragement, or discipleship. But we are pilgrims on the journey, encouraging one another as we heed Jesus' call: "Come, follow Me."

At MIT, David led an a capella vocal ensemble and he plays the piano. He has spent two weeks in Honduras doing evangelism in schools and passing out a childrens' version of the Bible. He's also gone to Mexico on several weekend service projects building houses and partnering with local churches for neighborhood vacation Bible schools. David has led a dormitory Bible study, a missions prayer group and helped out with Sunday School classes. 

Clearly David's desire is to be honed into the image of Jesus: "I want to have my eyes opened to the needs of the world, the needs of the poor, the needs of the city. I'm ready to be broken - to have my heart broken for the poor, and for the lost. What better way to do that, then to go in person, just as Jesus would have, to meet the people, to touch them, to feel their needs? And as God opens my eyes to the needs of His children, His precious creation, I want to say, "Here I am! Send me."

Hometown:  Sierra Madre, California (home of the world's largest Wisteria vine)

Siblings:  Nathan John, 25, a 3rd year student at the University of Southern California medical school. Richard Aaron (he goes by Aaron), 21, a junior (rising senior) at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Elizabeth Josephine, 19, a sophomore (rising junior) at Azusa Pacific University. Michael Benjamin, 17, a junior in high school Sarah Raphael, 15, a sophomore in high school Hannah Joy, 13 Rebekah Hope, 11 Mary Amarisa (she goes by "Amarisa"), 9 Ruth Evelen ("Ruthie"), 6. 

I love my family. Sure, there are times when living in a household of 12 can get to be rather crazy. But I couldn't imagine it any other way. It is a wonder and joy to have such kinship and camaraderie right within my own home. . . And there's something peculiar about my home, too, that even in the midst of all the people running about and making noise, there is peace--"shalom". My family and my home are, for me, a place of refuge. 

School: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Major: Master of Engineering; Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

I have always loved engineering, and I enjoy designing, building, and solving problems. So going to MIT and studying engineering was a natural choice for me. (It had been my childhood dream.) I had also considered attending a Bible school, something that might give me more training for missionary work - but, like a generous father, God said to me, "Go ahead son, and follow your dream. I want you to have the best education you can get." 

Reflections on Urbana 2000 

Anticipating the summer in Mexico City . . .
In one of the adventures of the beloved bear, Winnie-the-Pooh, his friend Christopher Robin decides to head up an expedition (also known as an "expotition", in Pooh's own words). Pooh is very excited about joining Christopher Robin on this "expotition," but he is a little unsure of himself, and he asks, "Are bears any good at it?"

I feel a lot like Pooh when I think about the Global Urban Trek. I am very excited to go on this adventure, this "expotition." But I also find myself asking, "will I be any good at it?" I am a little unsure about how I fit into the grand scheme of things, and I wonder if there is anything that I can contribute. Will it matter that I am there at all, will it matter that I - David Earl Robison - am on the Mexico City team? And yet I have faith that our sovereign God has been directing my steps . . . even though I don't know what I'm doing, and whether I'll be any good at it, He has a plan. 

Another more specific concern that I have, when I think about the Trek, is getting enough sleep. It may seem like a silly thing, but I treasure my sleep. When I don't get enough sleep, I start to get very emotional, and I can very easily be upset by lots of little things which shouldn't bother me. The term I use to describe it is "emotional instability". Of course, one of my friends just calls it "crankiness". :o) Either way, I'm concerned about getting enough sleep, because I want to be effective in all the things that we'll be doing, and not be held back by a lack of emotional energy. 

Heroes: From the Bible - Jesus (of course!), Joseph (the son of Jacob), king David; Other heroes - Eric Liddell, Abraham Lincoln 

Most recent accomplishment: Surviving 5 years at MIT. (Well, it wasn't completely horrible, so maybe the word 'surviving' is a little harsh. But I am glad to be done!)

Passions:  I love people - children in particular! 

Nickname: I never really had a nickname that stuck, but there are a few that people have tried to pin on me:

• "Rabbit" . . . I tend to eat really fast, so someone suggested that I should be nicknamed "rabbit"
• "The man from planet Dave" . . . my cross country teammates called me this in high school. It sort of has two meanings - my mind wanders a lot, so sometimes it seems like I'm off on another planet ("planet Dave"). I was also one of the faster runners on the team. . . when trying to figure out why I could run so fast, they decided it must be because I'm from another planet ("he runs like he's from another planet. . .").
• "Bazeecheewa". . . one time, I was trying to sing "Circle of Life," from the movie Lion King. I had no idea what the actual Swahili words were, so I just made them up. "Bazeecheewa" was one of my made-up words, and so someone turned it into a nickname.
• People sometimes ask me if I go by "Dave" or "David". Well, my *real* name is David, but you can call me "Dave" if you like. 

Most Recent Books Read: Magnificent Defeat, by Frederick Buechner (this is a beautiful and powerful collection of sermons. . . I strongly recommend it!), Timeline, by Michael Crichton, Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card

Favorite Quote: "Do I not destroy my enemies, when I make them my friends?" -Abraham Lincoln

"But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." -Isaiah 40:31 

Fashion Consultant: I used to rely very heavily on my mom for fashion advice. But in the past several years, I've decided to just go by my own judgment. I'm not sure whether I have good fashion taste or not . . . but I've received about a dozen compliments in the past several years, so I figure I'm not altogether off base. 

Favorite Movies: Amistad, Chariots of Fire, Little Women, Shadowlands, Prince of Egypt, Remember the Titans

This is me and my friend Danny, just hangin' out in front of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He and I were moving a couch from one end of campus to the other. Since Killian court (pictured) was right on our way, I thought it would be the perfect photo op, so I brought along my camera and tripod, and we took several pictures of ourselves with the great dome right behind us. Several other people - including a large group of tourists - wandered by while we were still in the middle of our photo shoot. Then they all wanted to have their pictures taken while sitting on the couch, so we let them . . . I'm sure we all looked very silly, sitting on a couch in a grass field, but it was a lot of fun. And the funniest thing is that when we finally picked up the couch, to move it to its final destination, one of the tourists decided to catch the whole thing on film with his camcorder! So somebody, somewhere, has a home-made movie of me moving a couch out of Killian Court.