As I reflect on our trip to Ecuador, there are moments that stir up waves of thanksgiving and joy. One of these times was our visit to Puyo. We stayed at the home of our faithful brother Juan where they had a graduation ceremony for those who finished the study through God’s Plan for His Church - no light requirement! The joy on their faces told a wonderful story of what they learned.
Among the six churches represented that night, there was a young pastor who made a commitment to expend whatever was necessary to reach the last two unreached people groups in Ecuador: The Taromenane and Tagaeri people. It is thought that there are 150 to 300 Taromenane in the rainforest and perhaps 20-30 surviving Tagaeri. This commitment carries with it the possibility of surrendering his life to accomplish this mission. He may well follow in the footsteps of Jim Elliot, Ed McCully, Roger Youderian, Pete Fleming, and Nate Saint who were killed by the Auca Indians. Was their mission a failure? Absolutely not! In God’s timing the gospel reached their hearts and there are now believers and indigenous churches among them. Will you join us in praying for German, the young pastor. Details have not been planned as to how he will reach the Taromenane and Tagaeri people, but the immediate need is prayer.
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For those of you who expect to read a blog every day, I apologize for missing yesterday. It was a full day in Guayaquil, Ecuador, meeting with pastors from various Quechua churches and listening to how God is using God’s Plan for His Disciples (GPHD) in Spanish. With a very early flight this morning, packing and rest were at the top of my “do” list.
As we have found in many places, the culture, traditions, and denominational forms often strongly influence how leaders oversee the study and application of Scripture in our training material. None of these forms are necessarily right or wrong. The pressing question we all must ask in any aspect of ministry is whether the form we are using accelerates God’s work of establishing disciples or in some way hinders the rapid growth that God wants to do. Rarely is this question asked by churches, ministries, or pastors. Paul faced this issue as it related to the gospel. Notice how pointed he was in his question to the Galatians. “Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” (Galatians 3:2–3). This question is more important than ever. The Lord is fulfilling His promise that “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). I believe in many ways this is happening now. We are getting very close to “the end.” We must be willing to examine whether our methods are biblical and accelerating God’s work, or inhibiting its progress? Content:
Thursday evening, we went to a graduation in Quito, Ecuador, of those who had completed God’s Plan for His Disciples (GPHD). Out of about eighty to one hundred in attendance, 24 graduated. The youngest was a ten-year-old boy and a twelve-year-old girl. The place was filled with worship and excitement with what God had done in them! This is rarely found anywhere else that we have been before. I am writing this blog from Guayaquil where we met with pastors who told us of the result of Tim’s last trip here in April this year. GPHD was introduced to two pastors by our “Timothy” in Quito. From that introduction, this is what has happened in three months!
It is hard for us to believe what God is doing here. We are attending a church service this evening where many different churches are coming together to be introduced to GPHD and start their discipling journey. Will you join us in praying that God’s work here will multiply in even greater ways, so the church is established in the Word of God. John the Baptist would not be a very popular preacher today. Notice the stinging words he uses as crowds came to John to be baptized.
“He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham” (Luke 3:7–8). Those are straightforward statements that called out their condition as it really was. They had come from a long line of religious people that only wanted what served their own interest. Their lives showed no fear of God and were barren. Worse, they claimed to be descendants of Abraham who obeyed God and walked by faith. They lived a mockery. Let us be very careful that our faith is built on the right foundation through repentance and faith in Jesus ALONE! The gospel we preach to others must lead them to a faith that is anchored in Christ’s work for us and nothing more! Yesterday we looked at one of the unique qualities of John the Baptist - humility. Today I want to look at another quality of John that made his ministry so valuable. How was this quality developed in John? It is clear from Luke 1:76 that Zechariah his father knew the Old Testament prophecies and quoted one of them at John’s birth.
“A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God” (Isaiah 40:3). As John grew, I am certain that his parents reminded him of this and other prophecies that guided his thinking, planning and preparation. It was unusual for anyone in Israel to take seriously what Scripture said about the nation and their condition. There is no doubt that John grew up in a family that deeply respected God’s Word and it influenced him. At a certain point, John “went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (Luke 3:3). Any heart that was going to receive the Messiah would have to repent first so their hearts would be open to the Lord. In this way, John was preparing persons to be a straight path in their hearts and lives. The obstacles in the Jewish mind were huge, which required this kind of radical path. In one sense, it is no different today. The gospel of grace takes root in hearts that know they were ruined by sin. How we prepare a way for the Lord in the hearts of others is first by understanding pure grace. It is a rare quality for someone in a leadership role to step aside to make way for someone else. Some might call John the Baptist a “rising star” or the next “mega church leader.” But John had the unusual quality of knowing his purpose and the limits of that purpose. Here are a few statements he made that confirm this quality and make us realize why he does not fit into the world’s idea of a successful leader.
This is a mark of a true servant that knows God’s purpose and is content in the role God has given them. John was beheaded for being faithful in his role. Such persons also have a reward that cannot be taken from them, and this world cannot give. I want my role to be fulfilled with this kind of confidence and grace. Do you? Sometimes it is very difficult to wait. When we wait for tangible items, it might be easier as we watch the progress of something develop and see it get closer to being finished - my wife’s bread! A farmer plants seeds and in a short time he can see tiny green shoots coming up through the soil.
Often investing in God’s work requires extra patience, especially when no one has the same vision you have. Take Simeon as an example. “There was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him” (Luke 2:25). Notice that “the Holy Spirit was upon him.” Cooperation with God’s work cannot be done by any human means. Only by the Holy Spirit can we wait for results that God has promised. As soon as Joseph and Mary placed Jesus in Simeon’s arms, he immediately knew his waiting was over. “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace according to Your word” (Luke 2:29). Waiting with assurance is only experienced through the Holy Spirit’s filling. Tomorrow, Tim, Tom and I fly to Quito, Ecuador. This is one of the most exciting trips that we have been on for some time. We will be able to attend three graduations of those who have completed their study of God’s Plan for His Disciples (GPHD).
Why is this such an important trip? From our first introduction to the Quechua Christians early this year, we have seen amazing spiritual growth with them. They felt that no one helped them get truly established in Scriptures the way GPHD does. We discovered that they are very hungry for God’s Word and want their faith to be strong so they can pass biblical principles on to others. There is another very exciting element to this. By becoming established in the Scriptures and able to disciple others, they will not be dependent on us. This multiplication principle is one of the reasons why the Early Church grew so quickly. The Quechua church in Guayaquil heard what was happening in Quito and Riobamba. This motivated them to ask us to come and start training 700 believers there. This has never happened anywhere else. Please pray for the Spirit to ignite a spiritual revival among them also. Tim and I were together this morning at the church where I serve as one of the pastors. It is just two days before our flights to Ecuador and I was asked to share why I was going. Since 2015 I have not been able to travel overseas because of numerous surgeries. Two were knee replacements which happened in April and July of this year. By God’s grace, I have recovered well and have permission to travel this time.
As I shared with the congregation about the trip and my joy in being able to go, we experienced an Acts 13:3 moment. “Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.” It is so reassuring to know that the local church is behind those who go out to serve. I am humbled by this opportunity. So much of my work and reporting on each NFI event is from behind my desk. To be on the field and see firsthand what God is doing is a great privilege. I have the sense of urgency that Paul had when he wrote to the church in Rome; “I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf” (Romans 15:30). Paul was never bashful about asking for prayer. For each of you who stand with us in prayer, we say THANK YOU! What God is doing with the Quechua church in Ecuador is amazing. Pray that what we say and do there will only facilitate this work with greater power and growth. We are happy to tell our readers that we have added a new lesson to our training book, God’s Plan for His Disciples (GPHD) on Prayer. It was developed after many suggestions from those who use our materials and many observers of this ministry. We are thankful for their input.
As with the Lord's Supper and with so many other traditions, routine can often aspirate the life and heart out of prayer. Our relationship with God is at the heart of prayer; prayer consists merely of speaking to God our Father and subjecting our will to His will. Prayer is the means for followers of Jesus Christ to communicate to God their requests, worship, praise, emotions and desires. It may be audible or silent, private, or public, official, or casual. I like this definition of prayer by J. C. Lambert, “Christian prayer in its full New Testament meaning is prayer addressed to God as Father, in the name of Christ as Mediator, and through the enabling grace of the indwelling Spirit”. Since we are following this powerful and effective pattern of the Early Church in Lessons 1-5, you can discover how Luke records the acts of prayer in the book of Acts in Lesson 5a. You will clearly see the connection between prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit. Additional Biblical references and helps concerning prayer can be found in Lesson 14, “Practical Helps for Prayer and Worship” on page 52. If you are interested in receiving a copy of this lesson or the whole book, please email us at: nfi@newfoundationsinternational.org. To receive the entire book, please include your address. |
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