As I seek to keep my fingers on the pulse of God’s work and our focus of seeing the gospel carried to the unreached, I notice some sad trends. The present COVID pandemic situation has created both challenges as well as opportunities. I am sure you have read in this blog before how God has given us tremendous opportunities, but they have not been without hurdles to overcome.
My concern lies with some who are seeking to take an easier road to avoid the difficulties in reaching the tribes and people groups who have never heard the gospel. “Sacrifice” is part of the cost of getting God’s life-giving message to these people. After being alone with His Father, Jesus intentionally avoided going to places where people knew Him and where He might be popular. Even the disciples were caught up in this fad. ““Everyone is looking for you.” And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out”” (Mark 1:37–38). Those towns had not heard the gospel message! There are a multitude of reasons we factor into decisions. We must examine each decision against God’s purpose for the Church (Matthew 24:14; 28:19-20; Mark 16:15). It is rare that God will lead us to a place because of convenience or personal benefit. We must measure our work by the divine standard and make sure it produces fruit to glorify God.
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There are times when persons around us face tragedy that is beyond understanding. Words seem hollow when we have not expereienced the same situation. Often just sitting quietly with someone who is in deep grief without speaking a word conveys more comfort than well crafted words.
Paul had been through intense suffering and needed comfort during these times. From that resoirvor of experience, he says “that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Corinthians 1:4). Almost every moment of grief is different for everyone who goes through them. The variety of personalities that God has created means that each person processes sorrow and grief differently. What Paul is saying is that we can at least share with others how God as our Father has provided comfort for us. Our experience will never match exactly what others are going through but through our intimate relationship with God our Father, we have what can be conveyed in how we love and care for persons who are hurting. Never assume you have the answer for everyone’s needs, but you do know the Person who does! Give what you have received. Paul’s prayers continue to challenge me as I see the details of his heart for believers in churches he planted. As you read this pray, think of the meaning and implications of the underlined words.
“And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God” (Philippians 1:9–11). These are not small thoughts! Without going into the meaning of each word I underlined, pray this prayer for yourself first and then think of two or three others that you will specifically pray this for. Be sure not to make this a ‘mechanical’ exercise but a genuine desire for their blessing. That was what Paul did. There are many of Paul’s prayers for churches he planted and the converts in them that give us a glimpse into how expansive his heart was for them. I will quote one of his prayers below which was to the Ephesian church that makes me wonder why we don’t have prayers like this.
“That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God”(Ephesians 3:17–19). These words describe Paul’s thoughts and desires for these saints that I have never heard anyone pray for someone else. Why is that? I believe we do not pray for others what we have not experienced ourselves. Our shallow knowledge of God is all we want for others and we do not understand what it means to “be filled with all the fullness of God.” It is time we as leaders experienced a deeper walk with the Lord so we can tell others what it is like and pray that they will have that same kind of walk. There are two major elements that Paul provides for the body of Christ to do ministry or missions. We find these in Ephesians 4.
Have we taken our “position” as pastors or leaders and used them to promote ourselves more than using the God-given gifts to equip others for doing the Lord’s work? This seems like a very harsh question, but after examining my own heart and motives, I see tendencies that go down this road. When last did you examine your heart with this question? What is the solution? As we keep reading the verses in this chapter, Paul insists that “we all attain…to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (13). That pursuit leaves NO room for self! Christ must be everything and our “all in all” (1:23; Colossians 3:11). Lord, I give up my own plans and purposes,
All my own desires, hopes and ambitions, And I accept Your will for my life. I give up myself, my life, my all, Utterly to You, to be Yours forever. I hand over to Your keeping all of my friendships, All the people whom I love are to take second place in my heart. Fill me now and seal me with Your Spirit. Work out Your whole will in my life at any cost, For me to live is Christ. Amen. Betty Scott Stam (Edited into today’s English) It is very unusual to find a young leader with a philosophy on missions that runs on biblical tracks and does not follow the trends of popular mission organizations. I had lunch with a young pastor of a local church who is truly on fire for doing the Lord’s work His way in His power.
Most missionary traditions require that the mission organization lay out detailed plans for language training, adapting to the culture, and financial support from home churches. Reporting from the field becomes a way of controlling the mission work. I cannot find where there is a model for this in the Early Church. My ‘new young brother’ totally agreed with me. Like NFI, he is committed to training indigenous leaders to take FULL RESPONSIBILITY for evangelizing and establishing the local church in any given culture. This approach to missions makes way for Spirit-filled spontaneous expansion. Roland Allen describes this term as “something we cannot control. If we cannot control it, we ought…to rejoice that we cannot control it…because it is too great, not because it is too small for us. The great things of God are beyond our control!” (The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church, page 8). Let us pursue the things of God that are too great for us to understand or control! In many of the recent blogs we have brought you news of developments in Ecuador with the Quechua believers. Because this is such a distinct movement of God, we don’t want you to miss future events and ask that you be in prayer for the next training trip.
Tom, Tommy, and Tim will be traveling to Ecuador February 21 - 28. We will follow-up with the amazing expansion and multiplication of God's Plan for His Disciples (GPHD) among the Quechua People in Riobamba. It is astounding and encouraging at each celebration to see these disciples receive their certificates after completing the Spanish GPHD. This has resulted in disciple and church multiplication. We will introduce the Spanish God's Plan for His Church (GPHC) to those who have completed GPHD and desire to go into leadership. We will also introduce the Spanish God's Plan for Young Disciples (GPYD) to teachers and parents who desire to teach children. Like the Macedonian call, the Otavalos People group who live in Northern Ecuador in the Andean Mountains heard about what God was doing among the Quechua People and have requested that we start GPHD training. This is a follow-up to an introduction several months ago in Quito. There is no question that the Lord is in this expansion of our training. |
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