"I will not violate the teaching of the text
in order to somehow sound more appropriate for the culture." Voddie Baucham
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We should know this fact, but almost every ethnic group that we train in their native land is represented here in the United States. That does not mean there are groups of believers and churches in the US that we can visit and train as we do in their homeland, but the number is growing. Just today I received an order from a Vietnamese family for our books, God’s Plan for Young Disciples, both the Teacher’s Edition and the Young Disciples Workbook.
This trend is not new, but it is a growing trend. What does this mean for NFI and for every other ministry that addresses the spiritual needs of these people groups? What is the leverage God is giving us right at our ‘Front Door’ that will accelerate His work, not just in the US, but in their homeland. It takes large amounts of resources and time for English speaking missionaries to go overseas, learn a new language and culture, be supported by the sending church(es), and hopefully present the gospel in that language, make disciples, plant a church so that it grows and becomes self-sustaining, self-governing, and self-propagating. What if the displaced believers right here were reached and equipped so they can return to their native land and effectively do what we do here. There would be no language and cultural learning, far less time commitment, and less costly. I admit that this would not work in every people group, but where it can, the advantage is huge. THINK ABOUT IT! ![]() Back on the 24th, I reported that we had completed the format work for the Acholi God’s Plan for His Church. That book will be used in Uganda to train and spiritually strengthen pastors and church leaders. We were able to send them enough funds for printing this book so training can start immediately. Our dear “Timothy” travels north to villages that need this kind of discipling and mentoring. Here is a comment we received in reply to our gift. “We are grateful to God for making this manual complete by His grace. This is a great blessing to Northern Uganda. New foundations International has been a great blessing to us and our ministry. The Acholi manual will also be used up in South Sudan with the Acholi speaking people in that country. Thanks for serving the Lord God Almighty.” This is great encouragement to us. There are a few translations that we put many hours into but rarely hear about the results. That is OK. We are not looking for applause. We are looking for the fruit of God’s Word taking root in souls that are moved by the Spirit to spread it to others, especially those who have never heard. ![]() From S. E. Asia: “We just trained young pastors and deacons using GPHC, in the Northeast. Currently, the weather in the North is very rainy which makes the road very dangerous. This makes it difficult to enter ethnic villages for training. Please pray for the 3 courses in the North, from June 24 to July 3, 2024.” From Zambia, Africa: “I'm so glad to tell you that we had a very successful meeting with Kerry, the lady running a school at the farms, who's a Christian from Canada. Kerry is very interested in our ministry and is willing to be trained so that she can train the pupils at her school. She is so excited and told me that after studying the manual she will give a copy to her friends in Ndola and Canada. She has agreed to work with me to reach as many children as we can. Kerry’s school has children from Grade 1 to Grade 7 and has plans to extend the school up to Grade 12. There are also orphans at the school who stay there. Pray for Kerry, the school, and the training, that it will become a movement of God. I'm seeing the abundant grace of God upon this ministry and the Holy Spirit is guiding us to reach many different people with this ministry.” In our Bible study this evening we were looking at Galatians 6 and discussing why we boast in nothing except “the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world”(6:14). We also noted how religions around the world must ‘do something’ in an attempt to appease and find favor with their god who cannot see, hear, speak, or handle those who come to it.
Paul faced this same idolatry problem in Athens. In his preaching, Paul explains this dilemma. “For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything” (Acts 17:23–25). Do you know God in these terms and are able from your personal experience with Him, to defend your faith and relationship with Him through the Lord Jesus? If not, I invite you to get acquainted with Him very soon. Since He “gives to all mankind life and breath” to everything, your life is in His hands, and you are dependent on Him for your existence. It has been some time since I mentioned in a blog the country of India. There is an amazing movement among believers who are persecuted, mainly in the eastern part of this vast nation of 1.435 billion people. Within this population there are 2,279 people groups and there are still 2,048 that need to be reached with the gospel.
That seems like a staggering task. Remember Jesus’ words in Matthew 24:14? “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14). The word “nations” in the original Greek language is “ethos or ethne”meaning people groups. Since Jesus uttered these words, is there any doubt that His promise will come to pass? Obviously, NFI or anyone else does not see everything God is doing. What we do see is what He has placed in our hands to do. I have reported on the Oriya language and the many pastors who were trained and have gone back to their towns and villages to disciple their churches. We are hearing of growing interest in God’s Word. In addition, I am in the process of editing God’s Plan for His Church in Hindi. This is a major language, and this tool will provide an opportunity to train many more leaders. Our goal is that they return to their places and help each believer return to the Scriptures as the only foundation for faith and practice. Will you pray for God to work? Each of the 3 5 languages we work in represents precious people who are eager to learn what the Bible says about the basics of the gospel and foundational principles on which the Church was built. Some of these languages represent thousands who have studied through God’s Plan for His Disciples (GPHD) and some who went further to learn leadership principles in God’s Plan for His Church (GPHC). Other languages may only be 25 or 100 people. The number does not matter. What matters is transformation taking place through God’s Word.
The most recent language and book I have been formatting is the Acholi for Uganda, Africa. I have just finished GPHC 5th Edition which our Timothy is using to train pastors and church leaders so they can better shepherd God’s flock in local churches. Since Uganda borders on South Sudan, he sacrifices time and resources to go north and train pastors in that country. Keep in mind that travel and conditions are very unlike what we enjoy here in America. This and the spiritual impact we desire to make, should be a constant reason to faithfully pray for them. Pray for our Brothers and Sisters as bound with them in the Body of Christ. It is often when we are very busy with many demands on our time and resources that we get very distracted with trying to get everything done. Depending on your situation, all the things on your plate might be very important and others might be applying pressure on you to get projects done, meet deadlines, and more. Time for undistracted prayer is not there.
I can only imagine the pressure that people tried to apply to Jesus after His first miracles. On one occasion Mark records that Jesus said to the disciples, ““Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat” (Mark 6:31). Jesus took the initiative to get them away. Jesus made it a practice to get away from distractions and public pressure for one very important habit - prayer. “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). The need for “a desolate place” for prayer is essential for effective ministry and life. A “desolate place” may not be easy for you to find. You can make a room, a place to walk, or anywhere that normal activities are not present as your “desolate place” to be alone with the Lord. If Jesus did this for His own refreshment and time to pray, we certainly need it even more than He did. Do you have a plan? In the past I have often referred to how the Early Church made prayer a priority (Acts 2:42). Since they faced opposition from the beginning of the Church, dependence in prayer was key to their remaining focused on the purpose and task of the Church. Access to the throne of God was understood by them. Consider the following exhortation:
“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). Just after the disciples asked Jesus how to pray, He instructed them in principles that strengthen our reason and commitment to prayer. “And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened” (Luke 11:9–10). All six of these words I have underlined are active verbs, not passive ideas. Let’s make sure that our praying is because of a personal relationship with God as Father, and that our requests are intentional, and their end goal is that He is glorified through the answer that God gives. One of the greatest weaknesses of Christians is forgetting that we do not see as God sees. We often look at problems or situations as if they are too difficult or even without any possible resolution. God see them as opportunities for Him to receive maximum glory.
Take for example the boy with the unclean spirit of Mark 9:14-29. It was natural for the father to be worried about his son who was under the control of a “mute and deaf spirit” (25). He brought his son to the disciples, but they were not able to handle this case which caused deeper discouragement with the father and mocking from the crowd. Before asking questions of the father, Jesus gave a general rebuke by saying, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you?” Notice that it was not the size of the problem but a lack of faith (see Matthew 17:20). This is confirmed by the father’s cry to Jesus in verse 24; “I believe; help my unbelief.” When we realize that most of our problems stem from a lack within ourselves, we will turn to the Lord and seek answers that will ultimately bring Him glory. In the process, we are changed from unbelief and resorting to human answers to finding our all in the Lord. |
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