Amazing Journey (Part One)

As we approach the t minus 7 months and counting mark in the countdown towards our move, a number of (well-meaning) friends, family and acquaintances have questioned our motivation, logic and to some extent, our sanity.

Each query was presented out of genuine concern and interest for our well-being. And in each event came a pause for some reflection on our part. Have you ever had to explain something you did, or wanted to do, that seemed to defy at  a few cosmic laws, if not a least one universal constant?

Let's fire up the Way Back Machine for 1991....our church was putting together its first missions trip. Destination: Victoria, Mexico. The announcement was made at service one Sunday and you'd expect one's motivation for going to be some selfless desire to help their fellow man....close, well almost close...my motivation was a little less altruistic. I wanted to go because it was a trip to Mexico and other people would help pay my way.

Needless to say it was a humble beginning for a now future missionary.

The team included quite a mix of talent from preaching, praise and worship, drama, kid's ministry and a construction crew. The people of Victoria were prayed for, entertained, ministered to, and had a new church building before we left. Even though I was in the midst of the ministry action, it was on the work site I caught my first glimpse into what missions was all about.

The scene looked like this: The church building is almost complete. Bob (from our church) is on a ladder running the wiring. Chewie (the church's pastor) is holding the ladder steady on the uneven dirt floor. As men from almost every nation and ethnic background will do under such conditions...they started a conversation. They chatted about their backgrounds, travels, hobbies, kids, etc...and in the midst of it all Chewie asked Bob to tell him about their church building back in Florida. Bob paused, looked down, and explained we didn't have a church building....yet.  Chewie would have been less amazed if Bob said we met in a sanctuary that held 100,000 people and had water slides. This Mexican pastor, who currently held his services in an empty lot next to a tortilla bakery, couldn't believe any church would voluntarily give of their people and resources to provide total strangers with a building, when they didn't have a building of their own first. He stopped short of calling us loco. But it doesn't stop here......

Chewie (at this time a trifle teary-eyed) humbly explained that just a few months previous his congregation had enough money to buy the supplies and hire the workers to put up their building. But when informed that a sister church had a financial emergency, Chewie and his flock, gave away their entire building fund. And he thought we were crazy??

It was a few days after they emptied their bank account Chewie received a call about a church in Orlando who had a team available to come down and put up their building, and pay for all the supplies. Coincidence, right?

Fast forward to the next day.....the big grand opening....the first service in this new building. Chewie is standing by the front door, beaming, grinning from ear to ear, ready to cut the ribbon. Can you imagine his emotions? The joy? The happiness??? It was at this moment I realised that giving and receiving are inseparable.... that this series of acts of selflessness and obedience would affect countless lives... that what had been done here would make a difference... it was a glimpse into a different reality...it was a step that would be followed by others, and lead to where we are today. 

One story might not fully explain why we're doing this, but it is a start....and there will be more stories to come. The big question is ....do you want to be part of them????

Born to run

Ever hit one of those age milestones that suddenly starts you on a trail of reminiscing? You take a moment every now and then to play those mental videos of days past. Sometimes they are simple memories; early birthday parties, first day of school, first dance...
This can also happen when you hear about an anniversary of some world event. Last year I realised I am older than Sputnik and Legos....so sometimes they are memory news clips, you know the "where was I when...?" Who out there recalls where they were when John F Kennedy was assassinated? (I was in first grade) Or the Apollo 11 moon landing? (I was 12) Or when MTV broadcast their first music video? Or the fall of communism in Europe?

How often have you found yourself taking a bit of a personal inventory at these time? I once had someone ask me...."How is your dash?" Think of a tombstone for a second....oft times you will see the year someone was born...then a hyphen (dash) and the year they died. The time in-between is your "dash". In your dash are things you cannot change, where you were born, your name, where you lived as a child...these were things out of our control. As we grew older we starting taking more control over our lives. Sometimes we made mistakes....sometimes we played the hero. Hopefully we all learned from both.

But if you're still reading this, your dash isn't over yet. What lies ahead? What changes can you make? How can you impact the people around you? Is there somewhere in your neighbourhood, your city, your nation, or somewhere on the planet you can make a difference?
Part of our DNA, part of our very core being wants to create a better world. Whatever you call it, deep down inside we want to be remembered, we want to create a legacy. We want to be part of something bigger than ourselves. We weren't born to be static...we were born to run.

God has used ordinary people to do extraordinary things for thousands of years. Some give of their talents. Some offer prayer. Some can provide financial support. Some put feet to their faith and go to serve. Each part is integral, each part thrives when all the others are in synch. So it is when all these parts of the equation come together....things like this happen....(excerpt from a letter describing what happened during an NLI short term mission trip to Slovakia) After some worship, testimonies, and a dance, one of the team preached about the lady who had been ill for years, and how she reached out to touch Jesus' coat and was immediately healed. Afterwards we asked if anyone would like us to pray with them: many did. Mark, one of the team members, prayed for a little girl (about 8yrs old). She was deaf. He prayed, knowing he could do nothing, but WITH God all things are possible. The interpreter repeated to the little girl all that Mark had said, and then clicked his fingers by the side of her ear. She spun her head round in amazement - she had heard the click. The leader of the small Christian group on the site spoke to us afterwards and said he knew the girl and her mum, and it was true that she had been born deaf. God gave her back her hearing that day. Awesome!

Do stories like this stir up something inside you? Does it make you wonder where could you fit in? There are many opportunities out there looking for someone, just like you, to fulfill a role....to make a change...to create a legacy.

Our ministry is one of those places. We invite you the learn more about what we're doing and where you could make a difference. Tis your move.....

Wonderin' Aloud

Ever buy Girls Scout cookies? To our North American readers, this is an event that has reached near-Holiday status. Once or twice a year, a girl in a green (or brown) uniform will show up at your doorstep. You will also see them at the entrance to your local grocery store or mall. Regardless of the location, colour of uniform, age or ethnicity of the lass(es).... they are on the same mission. Their strategy is simple, it is all in their hypnotic mantra..."Hello. Would you like to buy some Girl Scout Cookies?" This approach is so simple, so innocent, so disarming, it is almost a rhetorical question. How can you say "No"?

How many of us over the years have found ourselves buying box after box of Caramel Delights, Peanut Butter Patties, or my favourite...Thin Mints? What's the attraction? What's the Big Deal? What is the secret ingredient that has us buying these cookies year after year?

It isn't the sugar, flour, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, or the natural flavours. It isn't the box, nor the price. No, it isn't even the fact they are kosher. We are willing to part with about $3.50/box because it involves a cause. We are investing in these girls, and the cookies are just a nice fringe benefit.

You are probably asking yourself two questions right about now: 1) When will Girls Scout Cookies be available again? 2) What does this have to do with the ministry ?

Answer to Question 1: I don't know.

Answer to Question 2: You have the opportunity to become involved in something not too dissimilar to buying those cookies, and being part of a Cause, but with two major differences; Your support has impact both physically and spiritually. Plus it carries through from this life into the eternal.

So let's see how this would sound....

How about a box of Compassion? The ingredients include...."Your support was crucial to helping a new ministry reach out to pregnant teens in a part of Europe that has more abortions per year than live births"

Or perhaps a box of Caring? Made with...."Your involvement made it possible to partner with a church plant in a nation where they have the highest teen suicide rate in Europe."

Or maybe you'd prefer two boxes of Loving Kindness. A unique blend of...." Mobilisation of people from around the globe to help rekindle the Light of the World in some of the planet's most atheistic nations"

Granted these aren't the catchiest product names ever conceived, but you get the point.

So...would you like to buy some cookies?

(Factoid: France has more practicing Muslims than Christians)

Break on Through

Two years ago I met a pastor from southern Serbia, his name is Sasha. We met at an NLI pastors' conference in Belgrade. He was there as an attendee, I was there as a photographer. Having an American in the midst of about 40 Serbians,and a half-dozen Canadians, was a bit of a novelty. So as the week progressed I had many opportunities to chat with pastors from all over Serbia.
Sasha had just started a new church at that time and was eager to share their story. He had faith, high hopes, and an unwavering dedication to following God's instruction.
Two years later I happen to run into Sasha again, this time in Poland. His wife was home with a cold, so we "adopted" him for the week. Over Polish Pizza and Cokes we had time to hear more about his now not so new church in Kraljevo. At the end of the week we made sure to exchange contact info and the made the all so typical promise to keep in touch. Oddly enough, we have kept that promise.
I received an email from Sasha just today, and in it he shared a short update on their Christmas service. I'd like to share in with you...He also included the images you see in this message.

Dear Paul & Mary,
Hope you had a good Christmas and New Year. I am sure things are getting back to normal now.
Christmas in Kraljevo went very well. We had a wonderful service on our Christmas eve (6. January) in our church. The church was packed with people. We had to take all the chairs out and people were standing throughout all the service. Many, who were not able to come inside because of no space, were standing in our garden. Altogether we had 140 - 150 present and all these are people we have contact and are working with. Our children did a fantastic nativity play and I preached a simple and clear message about the real meaning of Christmas entitled "The birth of Jesus - our Saviour and friend". I am sending you a few pictures so you can see.
Wishing you every blessing,
Sasha
Now 140-150 people at a Christmas Service may not sound like much to you, and the "bathrobes and beards" certainly are nothing new in the arena of kid's nativity productions. But you need to know the rest of the story.....Sasha's church plant is one of the few in that region of the country. The population has a large Turkish presence, and there is a very strong Muslim influence on the culture. Those two factors alone have kept most Christians in the shadows. Add to that the mindset that many of the citizens consider Christianity a cult, and are openly violent towards them, you get the idea that only a lunatic would start a church in this environment. Oh...I almost forgot....Sasha has had death threats made against him, his wife, and children. He has had his car vandalized....and about a year and a half ago his church was firebombed. Yes, firebombed.
It is in this repressive atmosphere that these 140-150 saints gathered to praise the birth of Jesus. Despite social pressure, physical danger, and what sound like almost insurmountable odds....this church is alive and thriving. This story is just one of hundreds that could be told about the great works taking place throughout Europe. Sasha is just one out of hundreds of pastors being trained and helped through NLI's short-term missions teams. We are ready to join the adventure with Sasha and his brethren....you can come too.

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(Factoid: It is estimated that over 300,000 new churches are needed to win Europe back to Christ.)

Learn more about how you can make this a reality...

http://www.going4the1.com/

In Your Eyes

How do you view the importance of missionary work? How do you view the impact of short term mission trips? In this day and age when perception outweighs reality, here is what stm's can really do....

It's easy to accuse Short Term Mission teams of being one-hit wonders! They 'hit' a location for 10 days and then return home, never to be seen again. This is not the case with NLI mission teams. Fledgling churches being strategically planted across Europe are partnered with churches able to support them with teams, trainers, and finance. Many of these partner churches send teams year after year. This faithfulness is very much appreciated and helps build strong relationships between the two churches. Each year the teams can build on what they did the previous year, thus ensuring ongoing growth and impact. One-hit wonders? No way!

In August 2007, Cheryl and Ed returned to Tarascha (Ukraine) the church plant Cheryl had visited as part of a Canadian mission team in 2006. "When our team of 10 went to Tarascha in May 2006 little did we know the bonds that God would begin to form not only in the hearts of the Canadians that responded to the call, but also what God had done in the hearts of the people of Tarascha.

Last year we were very much impacted by what God was doing between our worlds and by specific people that we met. However, we did not realize that God would continue to grow His love in our hearts for one another after our departure. He opened doors that were otherwise closed. Some of these have remained open and continue to open wider as the Spirit of God continues to move.

Our mission to Tarascha was just as significant for the church in Vegreville. Not only does a team go, the whole church goes! That is what God has called us to do. We each have a role to play in the Mission field and realize that when we walk through the doors of our local church, we have just entered the mission field. This is the challenge God has brought to our church in Vegreville. At this moment in time, Tarascha is our calling."

Knockin' on Heaven's Door

In the midst of our trip to Poland we had the opportunity to visit Auschwitz. In a short two hours we were overwhelmed with the history and inhumanity of this place. I don't know if we will ever fully comprehend the scope of this tragic piece of history.

The picture in this post is of the lock placed on the door to one of the gas chambers. And as part of the tour we were able to walk into this very place where countless thousands died as poisonous gas was pumped into the room. I will never forget the chill that ran up and down my spine as we crossed the threshold. The only comfort was in the knowledge we could walk out whenever we wished.

The stories of the torture, the images of families being separated into lines...one line meant hard labour and worse, the other meant almost immediate death, the artifacts on display....thousands of shoes, bales of clothing, and perhaps saddest of all....remnants of infants' outfits and toys....all speaking of ultimate sadness.

One cannot visit this place without shedding tears.

We join many other in the prayer....Never again.

Back in the USSR (somewhat)

Greetings from Krakow Poland, Mary and I have been here for the last week attending NLI's EuroSummit. This is a meeting of NLI staff, their European ministry partners, and global friends, supporters, etc. We decided to make the investment for the trip to get "the big picture" about what NLI is doing across the continent. Needless to say we are more excited about our future adventure than ever.

Over the course of the past 6 days we not only had a chance to observe the local culture, experience the cuisine, and walk down some very historic streets....we also had ample opportunity to chat with many of the other conference delegates. Each conversation exposed a new facet, opened a new door, into a fascinating world. There were delegates from Serbia, Estonia, Poland, Ukraine, Czech Republic, UK, Australia, USA, Canada, Bulgaria, Romania and a few I probably forgot. We were amazed over and over again at the great works of God in action through these wonderful people.

As the week wind downs and we head home (tomorrow) we come home with new dreams, inspired spirits, and one more affirmation we are doing the right thing.