It is time for Jonathan to come home from Nigeria. Bonds have been formed with brothers through a common love for God’s Word that make spreading the gospel a joy as well as a commitment. They have also seen principles in Scripture that strengthen and unified the local church, making it single-minded in the gospel. “The brothers and I had our "last supper" tonight. I had saved an American summer sausage to share while they got a special African dish called ‘musa’ to share with us.” This reminds me of Paul’s departure from Miletus when he met with the Ephesian elders for the last time (Acts 20:36-38). They would never see Paul again, a man who had poured his life and teaching into them. Ministry is often a series of joining with others for a time and then separating. We should think of each relationship as the aroma of Christ because we are joined together in Him and we should leave behind marks of Christ that others will imitate. Please pray for Randy and the brothers as they head further north tomorrow into more tough places. Jonathan leaves for Abuja tomorrow to start his journey home. Thank you for praying.
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There is a remarkable statement by Paul in Philippians 1:27, "Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the truth of the gospel."
Philippi had been an interesting place to start a church. It grew out of Paul and Silas being thrown into prison. The jailor and his household were converted, baptized and a church was established. This amazing beginning and their love for Paul caused him to “thank God…because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now” (1:3-5). As with any good beginning, Paul knew there was a danger that the enemy would divert their focus on to other things causing their “manner of life” to misrepresent “the gospel of Christ.” That is a danger for any one of us. We must remember that every facet of our lives will either represent the gospel or detract from it. Then Paul addresses the issue we looked at yesterday - unity. We must not forget that the Spirit is the author and means of true unity (Ephesians 4:3). The exhortation here is to “standing firm in one spirit, with one mind.” The idea in “striving side by side” is that we intentionally work together to achieve the advancement of “the truth of the gospel.” There is no greater mission goal for any individual or church than this. Let us test our unity and see if it measures up. In several of Paul’s Middle Letters, he addresses the issue of unity among brethren because disunity hinders the gospel from moving forward in the power of the Spirit. That is why Paul told the Ephesians to be “eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” The word “eager” means to be zealous and work hard at or do one’s best to maintain unity. Paul gives a prerequisite in verse 2, “with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love.”
Because unity is so important for the spread of the gospel, Paul addresses this issue in different ways as in 1 Corinthians 1:10. “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” Each church had their own issues that caused disunity and Paul is careful not to make general statements but addresses specific issues that cause disunity. Since this subject is so important and directly affects the effective spread of the gospel, we will look at this subject again tomorrow. We are able to look back now as the training in Jos, Nigeria is finished. To all who prayed for this event, we say “THANK YOU!” As you can see from the picture, there are many reasons to thank the Lord for what He is doing in a country that is torn by unrest and where persecution is real. Jonathan has reflected on the steps that led up to this moment. From the beginning of this ministry, we have desired to make nothing of ourselves but seriously pass on to “faithful Timothys” principles of Scripture that are the foundation of the Early Church and how it expanded so rapidly. Putting into practice 2 Timothy 2:2 means more than just passing on “the doctrine of the faith.” It is also encouraging and praying for each person we train. In the words of Jonathan, “there is no greater ministry in the Kingdom than to encourage, pray for, and labor for building up others. We can look at each of you [mentors] and see how God has you here with us, spurring us on to go for the goal; our high calling in Christ.” Our partnership with others is only for the advancement of the Gospel among the forgotten of this world, those that have never been reached with the gospel of Jesus. We are so grateful for God using us in a small way in Nigeria. May He multiply this work for His glory. “I met Shadrach today. He was thrown out of his village and disowned by his parents as a child because they blamed him for bad things that happened to his family. This is a common practice and one of the reasons why there are so many children living on the streets.
He is standing in front of a building that he would sneak in and try to sleep in as a boy. He was taken in by an orphanage and came to know the Lord Jesus as his Savior. Now he has a ministry that takes Bibles to places that they are not allowed. What an awesome story of redemption. He also ministers to boys who have experienced the same things he has gone through. These are stories and reasons why we are here sharing the Gospel; helping to fan into flame what God is already doing while also encouraging, equipping, and empowering local leaders to go to places that have not heard the gospel. At the same time, we want them to establish strong and upright churches. Please continue to pray for the trainings as we wrap up our time in Jos and head north on Monday morning to Bauchi. I identify with Paul’s words, “To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things” (Ephesians 3:8–9).” (Jonathan) Becoming more effective in prayer is one of my deep desires. I find that certain habits I get into when praying for others may miss the divine purpose for that person, church or world view. Specifically, in connection with mission work and our training around the world, Tim sent me a list of prayer requests that should mark our prayers for those in the harvest field.
“Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you, and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have faith” (2 Thessalonians 3:2). The first objective and desire in our prayers should be that the gospel, “the word of the Lord” spread in such a way that it is honored. Satan is set against this because the “Word of the Lord” is a direct representation of Christ who is the Word (John 1:1). That being so, we must ask God to deliver His servants from “wicked and evil men.” They carry the Word that contains life. “May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.” (2 Thessalonians 3:5). Those on the front lines of the world who carry the gospel and principles of Scripture need strengthening so they remain steadfast in their call. Let us pray for those on the field with these biblical desires. Randy and Jonathan arrived safely in Abuja and after a long drive through many checkpoints, they arrived in Jos, their next training site. Randy has been here many times, but each training is unique. Please pray for the time with these brothers and sisters over the next three days as they assist indigenous trainers with presenting Gods Plan for His Church.
Randy shared the 4 stages of discipleship that help to make our training truly indigenous: 1) I do - you watch - we talk (discuss) 2) I do - you assist - we talk 3) You do - I assist - we talk 4) You do - I watch - we talk 5) Then the last is, "Now share with someone else" This process is in view of making 2 Timothy 2:2 a reality in every place we go. It deepens the learning process so that what the student hears/learns, they tell others which causes them to become an effective teacher by hearing and eventually teaching what they learned. Randy pointed out that we are at a point with these students in Jos where we are assisting and watching. This causes great praise to the Lord. Let us pray that we get to a point where the leaders can become a leader of leaders and share what they have learned with someone else. Your prayers are essential and much appreciated. Yesterday we looked at the intimacy of Jesus with His Father and Jesus desire that His disciple be with Him so He could prepare them for being sent out. To emphasize this important preparation for ministry, let’s look at Jesus prayer to the Father just before His crucifixion.
“Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, may be with Me where I am, to see My glory that you have given Me because You loved Me before the foundation of the world.” (John 17:24). I would be so bold as to say that this feature of being with Jesus and seeing His glory is absolutely essential for effective ministry. That in a sense was a requirement for filling Judas’ position with the twelve (Acts 1:21-22), one “of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us” (Acts 1:21). There is much more to this point to absorb, but I will leave that for another blog. Until then, have you spent time gazing (looking and meditating) on the glory of the Lord? I love what God is shaping and molding in so many Timothy’s. He is never short when it comes to creating new ways of accomplishing His work. One of the ways God is using COVID to further His work is by developing a greater desire and deeper experience of intimacy with the Lord.
Jesus modeled this early in His ministry so the disciples could watch how He had a quiet time. “And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He departed and went out to a desolate place, and there He prayed” (Mark 1:35). Communion with the Father was a high priority. The idea of continual intimacy was emphasized again as Jesus selected the twelve. “And He appointed twelve (whom He also named apostles) so that they might be with Him and He might send them out to preach” (Mark 3:14). This last reference in chapter 3 has two components that are very important:
I trust you are proving the benefits of intimacy with the Lord. If not, today is a great day to start. “Thank you, brothers, for all the prayers. Randy and I spent today reflecting and resting in Christ as we waited for our negative covid test results that will allow us to head to Nigeria on Tuesday. Please continue to pray for all of those details, including the flight and travel in Nigeria.
I am thinking about a lot of things, but in particular the idea of being filled with the Spirit. Many times I have prayed, "Lord empty me so I can be filled," but today I was asking the Father for the opposite; "Lord fill me so I can be emptied of self. I can't do this on my own. I can't get out of my own way. I need your Spirit to fill the crevices of my life with Himself and push out the self interest in me. I don't know about you, but I just want to be with God and where He is at work. That starts with being filled so I can follow. Jesus makes this point in John 12:26; “If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.” Are you where the Spirit is already at work? (Jonathan) |
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