YOU are a Piece of the Puzzle

Who in the world doesn't love a good challenge?! Honestly, I think it is the reason why people love to sit and work on a difficult puzzle together. So that in the end, you can exclaim, "WE DID IT!!" Right? Have you been there? Given up on that crazy hard puzzle where every.stinking.piece.looks.the.same, only to come back to it after a family member found a couple more pieces that fit just right?? When it comes to a challenge, sometimes it is just more fun to work as a team!

Okay. Here's where YOU come in to being a PIECE to the PUZZLE that God is putting together in Berlin, Germany. (See what I did there?)  Our family purchased a puzzle illustrating all of the key landmarks of Germany. This box'o'challenge will arrive at our doorstep sometime this week. (Thank you, AmazonPrime!!)

YOU are going to join our team, Team Berlin, by helping us put this puzzle together! YOU will become a PIECE of God's mission work in Germany! Are YOU excited?!?!

Here is how it will work:

We will not begin the work of putting the pieces together until they are purchased by donors. SO that means we cannot put the pieces together until two have been donated. :)

YOU will get the opportunity to purchase puzzle pieces at your own monetary discretion. Now, this IS a FUNdraiser, and as my friend Rachel pointed out to me we "are going to Germany not Abilene!" That being said, the smallest donation per piece will be $5...but there is NO cap on the HIGHEST donation. (Did you hear that? NO CAP!)

When you purchase a puzzle piece, I will write your name on the back of the it and our family will pray for you and your family. We will then post it on our blog along with a fun~fact about Germany. We will be putting this puzzle together on a large piece of glass so that we will be able to see the top and the bottom, a beautiful reminder of those who have joined in what the LORD is doing across the world!

How to purchase a puzzle piece:

CLICK HERE

This is the hard part...YOU have to FILL out some information. I am so sorry! I know it's a pain!! But it means the WORLD to us!! And it's fun, remember??!! Okay, fill that stuff out and, this is IMPORTANT...where it says Use My Gift For The Initiative Designated By The Follow Account: In "Further designation details" PLEASE PUT "PUZZLE FUNDRAISER" in that box. That will help us determine who is giving specifically to this FUNdraiser!

Did I mention that your gift is tax deductible? It is!! Yay for YOU!!

We will use the funds received to get to Germany. It costs a LOT of money to move internationally. Like, a LOT! So, with our whole hearts we thank you for being a part of our team in this way! The second you purchase a puzzle piece, you will join a mission team! Our prayer is that this will ignite conversations around the dinner table regarding God's heart for missions...We can also throw out some conversation starters as donations come in. We hope that you are encouraged through this and that your love for Jesus and ALL that He did for you is strengthened! Get your whole families involved! Our children are already sharing this with their friends, and we LOVE that! Make sure they know how to get involved! It is a sweet, sweet thing to watch children desire a love for Jesus through missions. Share this on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, blogs, whatever social media you use! This is YOUR team, remember?

We are thrilled to see what the LORD does to encourage you all in this journey. Thank you for joining our team!

The Campbells

The Power of Jesus' Words

Today I went to get a haircut. If you know me at all you know that sometimes hair cuts go well and sometimes they do not. The reason for this is that I try my best to be a witness for Jesus as I am getting my hair cut. There was that time that I had 1/2 of a hair cut and was ushered to the door. While that is not normal for me it does cause a check in me that makes me wonder how this conversation is going to go.

As a person who is passionate about evangelism I have grown a bit frustrated lately at what I call 'typical evangelism.' This type of evangelism seeks to either convince a person of the existence of God (which is silly to me- because they already know He exists) or convince them of their sinfulness. Ultimately it becomes a sales job. Ask the right questions, lead the conversation properly, press for a decision (to pray a prayer, attend a church, or something). So what is my frustration? Well the easiest way I can explain it is that I have this mental picture of me standing in front of the tomb of Lazarus commanding him to come out. No matter how many times or what manner I command nothing happens -- at all. Then Jesus walks up and simply says, "Lazarus come forth" and the dead man gets up and walks out. Basically nothing I say has any effect on a person. Honestly, if you are passionate about evangelism then why bother if there are going to be no results right? You can tell yourself all day long that it is not about results and you may be able to believe that for a while. But the extent that God has gone to save fallen humanity tells me that He is far more willing to save than I give Him credit for.

So today I sat in the chair and listened to this lady tell me of the fact that her mother was dying and completely afraid of dying. I listened to her tell me of the catholic priests coming in to read her her last rites and pray for her. They lady explained to me that her mother was very religious but that she herself was not so much. She was happy to let people choose which ever way was best for them. Then I explained to her the biblical reasons for why there was sin, suffering, sickness, and death in the world. I explained to her about trusting in the righteousness of the ONe who has been truly righteous. I explained to her about our inability to live up to the standard that God has given us. We talked about belief and what that means. We talked about faith for faith's sake is worthless because faith depends on the object the faith is placed in. We talked about the futility of good works. Nothing I said was anything she disagreed with. Basically it was a replay of the same scene I have seen over and over and over. I am speaking but she is not hearing me. It is just not hitting home. It is like you are trying to convince a person of something, they are telling you they agree, but you can tell they have no idea what you are saying. So frustrating.

So I asked her the strangest question that I think has ever come out of my mouth. I said, "do you want to hear God speak to you right now?" She answered unequivocally "Yes!" So I prayed out loud, "Father this lady wants to hear what you would have to say to her. Show her your love and tell her whatever you want her to hear. In Jesus name, amen." I asked what he said. She said, "Oh my goodness, I have chills all over me! He said for me to be still and know He is God!" She cracked at that moment and the conversation was radically different. She suddenly totally got following the person of Jesus and not following a religion. She began talking about where to take her husband and two boys to church. It was a night and day change.

I talked to this lady for 20 minutes with no visible discernible change. I am 99% sure that what I spoke was extremely doctrinally sound and extremely biblical. Yet my words had no effect. Jesus spoke 7 words to her and it wrecked her.

This is the same person who told the Fisherman to 'follow me' and they left everything immediately and followed Him. This is the same voice that told Lazarus to stop being dead. This is the same voice that told a slew of demons to go and they went. This is the same voice that told lepers to stop being lepers and they were clean.

His words have power, real power. His words bring life, real life.

Spiritual Dry Times

I know we have all had them. I know you know what I am talking about. The times when you are praying and it seems as though your prayers go no higher than the ceiling. It happens to all of us at various times and in varying degrees. I have often been taught that this is normal and even helpful (ultimately). But now I am not so sure. Not long ago I was going through a time like this and just crying out in prayer, "Lord where are you?!?" In a moment of desperation I hear a faint and gentle whisper, "I am right here, I have always been here. I promised you I would not leave you and I do not lie. The question is where are you?"

This hit me like a ton of bricks. The issue was not that the Lord had left but that I had. He has promised to always be with us, but we cannot make the same promise to Him. My heart was wandering and wrestling and struggling and racing and just restless. I was doing a lot of activity and just felt dry. He stopped me in my activity and called me to just be still and know that He is with me. It was a blessing like no other for me at the time. Perhaps it will be a blessing to you. He has not abandoned you. He is still there. Are you?

Questions That Spark Great Conversation

Sunday night we were at a great friend's house and he asked my wife and I an interesting question: What things in the bible do you believe to be true but find it difficult to admit that you believe it?

This one question sparked an entire evening of very rich and deep conversation. So how about you? What things in the bible do you believe to be true but find it difficult to admit? Take a chance and ask someone that question and see where the conversation leads. I think you will be surprised.

Demons and Missionaries

Yesterday I was praying and came under severe conviction of something. To follow Jesus means to obey Him. If we do not obey small commands or seemingly easy commands, what makes us think we can obey bigger commands? As I was praying The Lord directed my thoughts to one of His commands. It is something that every single Christian person can do. It is not difficult. At the outset it will take very little time, yet it has the promise of being absolutely world changing.

Matthew 9:38 "The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to The Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."

Seems harmless enough right? But earnestly? Is that something we do? Is it urgent and bold that The Lord of the harvest would send out workers?

Then there is the idea of "send out" or "send forth" laborers. This means to eject, cast forth, forcibly move. Are we praying that God would violently uproot people and send them forth? I wasn't.

What are we asking The Lord of the Harvest to do exactly? Well the same word is used in Luke 11:20 "But if by the finger of God I cast out demons, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you."

So in both instances we are asking The Lord Jesus -- who is The Lord of the Harvest -- to forcibly remove and eject demons and forcibly remove and eject missionaries into the harvest. Can you see it? This is a not a passive prayer of "let us all be effective where we are planted."

I am not going to get into some silly debate as to whether everyone should go or not. That is irrelevant to the discussion. Instead I am asking you to join me in being obedient to earnestly pray daily that The Lord would launch out laborers into His harvest. Let Him do what He will do. Let Him send whom He will send. But will you join me in praying earnestly to The Lord of the Harvest that He will eject laborers into His harvest?

I am not asking you to move anywhere. I am not laying any sort of a guilt trip on anyone. I am simply saying that if we are followers of Jesus then let's be obedient to this command. Will you join me today in praying earnestly to The Lord of the harvest to fling forth missionaries and forcibly cast them out into the field and that He would also forcibly cast out demons from people and areas of the world?

Unless I am missing something, it does not appear that He has made this part optional.

"When The Lord of the Harvest speaks demons vacate and missionaries relocate." -quote from unknown origin.

Famine

Lately I have been trying to radically alter the way I eat. As I age I am becoming more and more aware of the fact that much of what is commercially available for purchase in the United States is not really food. Sure it pacifies hunger for a bit but I am more and more convinced that there is more damage done than good. When I was a kid 'peanut allergies' were unheard of. I had never heard of Gluten until just a few years ago. Compound that with the onslaught of cancer cases I am hearing about recently and at some point you have to come to grips with the fact that things are different.

When trying to eat healthy you hear all kinds of advice. One of the best I have heard is "never go into the center of a grocery store to buy anything." That is pretty good advice, but there is an issue. That food is crazy expensive.

My wife told me a story about a friend of hers who ran into a lady at Wal-Mart back during Christmas and came to discern that she was tremendously hungry and had no money. The friend took her to the grocery part and began filling a cart for her. In this she was shocked that someone would buy her something like Bananas. Bananas are perishable and they do not store very well. The friend came to realize that this lady's whole grocery world view revolved around buying items that were cheap and did not perish easily. As a result she was hungry and poor yet obese.

When you read the pages of the bible or even study world economies famine is a real legitimate concern. Many times famine was judgment.

Yet I have always held the worldview that God is blessing our country. We are not going hungry. We are the wealthiest nation on earth (even if we are slipping). I have always seen us under blessing. But Proverbs 10:22 says "the blessing of The Lord makes rich and He add no sorrow to it." So it is has become commonplace to say The Lord is blessing us with XYZ medicine or XYZ food or XYZ job all the while suffering tremendous side effects. So the question is, "are they blessings?"

Famine is usually characterized by shortage of food and high prices for the food in demand. If we discount what is not really food as being "something else" and we just consider "real food" then must we not conclude that we are in a famine?

What a tragedy to be in a famine, starving to death, all the while living in complete denial.

What are your thoughts?

We Talk Too Much

There is a strange sort of discipline happening with me having a blog right now. In the past I have wanted to blog and felt like I have nothing to say. Now I feel as though I have a lot to say, but as the Lord grows me in wisdom, I am seeing that now is not the right time. There will be plenty of time to say what needs to be said but now is not the time. I am reminded of a saying that I think I may have heard my dad say a million times, "It is better to keep your mouth closed and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt." I think this is just an East Texan paraphrase of:

Proverbs 17:28 Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise;

when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.

GOER, SENDER, MOBILIZER

I realize that most of the people who read this blog may not be familiar with the inner workings of what I call the "missions world." There is a whole language, thought process, and network that is really amazing. I am done with assuming that I understand what is going on in the world around me. Instead I am learning to take everything that happens and bring it to The Lord and allow Him to tell me what is really happening. It has been an eye opening thing for me.

Among those familiar with the missions world there is the concept of "Goer, Sender, or Mobilizer." It goes like this: "God has called some to go, some to finance those who are called to go, and those whom God has called to help mobilize and prepare those who are called to go." Sounds reasonable right? Sounds logical right?

Well, I am not going to get into the business of right and wrong, but will instead speak to what The Lord has placed on my heart. I had spent a great deal of time wondering which role I am to play, but The Lord began to show me that these are not separate roles but one.

As a goer I am constantly casting vision to the heart of our Father and helping send those people out. That is what we do. The workers for the harvest are currently in the harvest! The workers we are told by Jesus to earnestly pray for are currently not believers right now. They do not yet know who they are in Christ!

Here is the picture The Lord showed me. On one hand you have a healthy plant with healthy fruit and healthy seed. The plant pollenates and the seed is spread by the wind, the rain, birds, insects, etc. And the healthy seed spreads greatly. On the other hand you have unhealthy plants producing very little fruit but a significant labor force trying to get the seed healthy to produce good seed and the seed to spread only to be frustrated. It is kind of like genetically modifying seed to get what appears to be a greater harvest only to see (after years) significant side effects and other issues that have arisen because of this.

Here is what I am saying. If you are called to go -- do not assume that you are not also called to give and mobilize. If you are called to give to those who are going do not assume that you are not also called to go and mobilize. If you are called to mobilize then do not assume then do not assume you are not called to go and not called to give to those going.

One last comment to the mobilizers of the world. What if the greatest resource and place to find those to mobilize is in the place that seems to have the least fruit --right now? What if you went forward as a harvester and then mobilized what you harvested?

Just some thoughts.

A Conversation That Did Not Go Well

Jesus made me a promise. He told me that if I would follow Him He would make me a fisher of men. It is not that I would go seeking the fishing but that I would follow Him and the result would be holiness, righteousness, humility, kindness, and it would result in drawing people to Jesus as a fisherman draws in a net. But some times I am can get over confident and leave my savior. Thankfully this is an indication to run quickly back to Him. Last night I was wearing a shirt that stated things like "God Made Everything." I had made a quick stop by a grocery store to pick up a few items. The store was quite busy and I was in a hurry so I did not anticipate having a discussion with anyone. As I checked out, the cashier(a young Asian man named James) asked: "Sir are you a creationist?" It caught me off guard and I was not sure exactly what he was asking but then the light went on. I said enthusiastically, "why yes I am! Are you?" He hung his head and said, "no I am quite the opposite."

Now this, I have come to recognize, is an invitation to speak of Jesus -- but I failed. Instead of speaking of Jesus I said, "I would be happy to get together and discuss it with you if you would like." His response was telling. He said, "I used to enjoy those discussions but now I do not." I said, I understand and by this time he was already scanning the person behind me's order. I thanked him and wished him a great day and said good bye.

This is a man who has likely been desperately seeking truth and somehow others have made the discussion all about creation instead of Jesus. As a result this man has discussed in the past and found no relief and was no longer interested in the discussion. The point is not creation versus evolution. The point is not science versus faith. The point is Jesus.

The Apostle Paul was a highly intellectual person who thought He had all the answers -- then He met Jesus. This man does not need to be argued in or out. He needs an encounter with Jesus not a pointless argument.

I left the parking lot last night deeply convinced that the Lord had given me that precise encounter to show me that He is sending me out as a sheep in the midst of wolves. Any sheep that leaves His shepherd will be eaten in that environment. Don't leave your Shepherd David, don't leave your Shepherd.

**note**it is easy to be ok with the fact that "God is in charge of everything" and that I do not have to worry about this guy. But that is not the heart of my Jesus. He said He was not willing that any should perish, I cannot have a different heart. It is not ok for people to not hear of Jesus.

Haircuts and Jesus

As I got my haircut today I noticed the accent of the lady cutting my hair and asked where she was from. She said she was from Ukraine so I asked what part. She explained that she was from the south near Moldova. I told her I have always wanted to go to Ukraine and this piqued her interest. She asked, "why, for tourism?" I said, "no to tell the people about Jesus." This is where the conversation got interesting.... She asked what religion I am so I said that I follow Jesus. This became confusing to her and she continued for some time trying to get me to identify myself as protestant, catholic, or something else. It was then that I began to explain that I do not follow a set of rules of "dos and don't" but rather I follow a person. He tells me what to do and I do that. I look at Him and follow Him and as a result I am becoming more and more like Him.

She asked, "in your religion can I drink?" I proceeded to tell her the story about how Jesus spent a lot of time with drunkards and prostitutes. He loved them, provided for them, healed them, and showed them love when the rest of the world despised and rejected them. I told her about how many people had a serious problem understanding and grasping the radical nature of Jesus' love for them. These were some of His first followers. This led to a further discussion about the American legal system and the way that she has been treated in the United States. BY the end of the conversation she thanked me and said that it was very interesting to her to learn about Jesus this way.

Somehow it seems that those outside of the Kingdom have gathered from us that following Jesus is about what we do and don't do versus following a Person. Evangelism has nothing to do with following a prescribed formula or saying the right words. Evangelism is about lifting up Jesus and allowing Jesus to draw people to Himself. I have yet to meet a person who initially came to Jesus with pure motives -- not one. It has been said, "we are all heretics when we come to Jesus." I have heard of evangelism methods that grade the students on what they say and don't say. From my knowledge of that method I am pretty sure Jesus would have been dinged pretty heavily on almost every encounter He had with people.

Jesus said that the result of following Him would be fishing for people. It is not that we go searching for the fishing but rather the natural outworking of following Jesus is that we are fishing for people. This is what Jesus did. This will be the result of the same Spirit living in us that lived in Him -- He does not change.

Speak of Jesus...a lot! And watch Him draw people to Himself.

Sharing The Love Of Jesus

Last week I had the unique opportunity to go to the county hospital and pray with a young man that I did not previously know. He has been in a bad auto accident and had been taken to the hospital unconscious. Upon entering the man's room I over heard that he was being yelled at over the phone by another person. After he hung up the phone he told me that he has borrowed the car that was totaled and had now lost a friend because he fell asleep and drifted into the street and this was the cause of the accident. After a short conversation the man was very sorry for what had happened to the car he was driving and the wreck that he had caused. He began to tell me that he was hoping to apologize to the person who hit him (not otherwise harmed except auto damage).

It was then that the Lord laid on my heart to share the story of the prodigal son. I told him about the apology speech that the son was rehearsing for his dad and how the dad ran to forgive him before the speech was actually delivered. As the story came out the young had tears streaming down his face and through broken speech said, "that is my Father!"

It was a beautiful scene to see him see himself through the eyes of his heavenly Father and to hear the means through which he can be reconciled to his Father. It may have seemed strange to go and visit a young man that I had no connection to other than knowing, second-hand, of his situation. I am not a professional pastor and I was not trying to recruit him for my church. I was just a dude showing him the tangible love of Christ in the middle of a really bad situation.

As I engage more and more in this sort of activity, I am seeing more and more the radical nature of the love of our God for people. It is truly staggering the depths of the love that He has for people. My prayer is that I would be faithful in what He has given me so that He would entrust more of these opportunities to me.

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. (John 12:26 ESV)

Jesus came to seek and save the lost. I want to be with Him where He is.

The Wrong Lens

I recently had a very profound discussion with my son regarding visible versus invisible. In it we discussed that "invisible" may not be what he thinks in that he may simply be looking at things wrongly. The example cited was; "if I am standing behind you speaking and you hear me but do not see me, am I invisible? No, you are merely looking at the wrong thing." This was a completely impromptu discussion that God has literally used over and over and over to rip my world apart! It came from my lips but I now know who was speaking.

Yesterday, I had a discussion with a mentor of mine who told me the story of how he was once mentored by an old Chinese pastor years ago. The Chinese man asked him to explain Jesus' parable of the man who finds the treasure in the field and sells all that he has to buy that field. My friend told me that he began to explain the value of the Kingdom of God and how a person, when he understands the true value of the field sells everything to gain that field. The Chinese man then said, "that is the problem with you Americans, you think everything is about you!" The Chinese man went on to explain that in every other parable God is the key operator! This parable is about the lengths that God will go to to rescue and redeem His people.

That changes everything about the parable doesn't it?

Here is one that has been on my heart for a long time; the parable of the sower and the seeds. Jesus says that the sower is the Son of Man - the self title of Jesus. That means He is the sower - not us.

So what is the big deal right? The big deal is that if we miss this perspective and view it from the wrong lens then we are looking for the wrong things. If when you share the gospel you are under the impression that you are sowing then naturally you will not be looking for fruit. But if you understand that the Son of Man has already been active and scattering seeds all over the place, then you will be actively looking to gather and harvest!

This bothered me for years because I saw many people involved in evangelism with virtually no fruit - or at least very small amounts of fruit. It did not make sense to me that the Gospel could be the power of God and have such little effect on people. So I chalked it up to the Sovereignty of God that He saves who He will. Yet I also saw that Jesus said He was not willing that any should perish but that that all should come to repentance. Plus the lengths that He went to redeem people by dying on the cross just never stacked up that he would now be unwilling to save.

What if He is willing? What if He is still able? What if we quit blaming Him and understand that the problem is not in Him but in the fact that our eyes are focused on the wrong thing?

I think you know the answer.....

Biblical Church Planting

There are 4 types or models of biblical church planting [although I could argue there is likely only 2 types] (adapting a LOT from Roland Allen's "Missionary Methods: St. Paul's or Ours?). The Jerusalem Model - This takes it's name from the fact that it was started in Jerusalem (Acts 2:14-8:3). Peter preached his sermon in Acts 2 and the church took on an expression there in Jerusalem. When persecution arose and people began to spread out, they took the 'church' with them. They had already a concept of the church and they just took it to another place. Those engaging in this model experienced 'church life' before they started the new local assembly. When I read the book of Acts I see the first church as spontaneous and the others seemed to be the Lord forcing the spreading. The purpose in relocating was NOT to start a church but was rather for other issues. I call this passive church planting. The churches sprang up spontaneously and rapidly by default.

The Antioch Model - This is the principle way that churches were planted in the first century (Acts 13:1-20:38). Missionary workers were sent from a local body and they went to a town and the preached Christ. They did not preach adherence to a set of doctrines or experiences, but rather they preached Jesus Christ as Lord and them as their servants. That is a pretty interesting message, no? "Excuse me but you have a new master and He has sent me to be your servant. You have been adopted by a King, He has absolute rights over you. He commands immediate child like obedience from you, but do not worry because He has given me to you to be a servant." The churches were planted rapidly and Paul left them in their infancy.

The Ephesian Model - We call this the Ephesian model because it was spoken of by the Lord in Acts 19 when Paul rented the Hall of Tyrannus. In Ephesus, Paul taught a select group of guys who planted regionally from 11am - 4pm daily for two years. The issue I have with calling this a 'model' is that it seems that Paul taught them, in essence the "Antioch Model." It would almost be as though this was an effective manner of teaching rapid church planting. Yet even though Paul was in Ephesus for 2 years, the church sprang up rapidly as did many the churches of those sent out from his CPM school.

The Roman Model - This one is a bit tricky in that chapter 16 of the book of Romans indicates that Paul was familiar with the people in Rome but had not been there yet. So this look like a more purposeful version of the Jerusalem model in which people were sent to Rome with the purpose of planting a church. Again, if a church relocates then it is obvious that springs up spontaneously.

In all biblical examples:

Jesus was the functional and practical leader of the local expression of the church. The local expression was either founded in another city and therefore already existed or sprang up spontaneously. Church planters were not the pastor/shepherds, they were appointed by recognizing who was already serving that function. Church planters appeared to play a role in rooting out weeds, settling disputes, and delivering warnings. Much like a farmer fosters the environment is conducive to natural growth.

Thoughts?

Greater Works

John 14:12 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.

The Lord Jesus made this astounding statement. I have heard so many people who have assumed that meant that, as Jesus' followers, we would do more spectacular things than He did. There have been miraculous healings, people raised from the dead, sicknesses healed, etc. I fully concur that a lot of this has been done in Jesus' name. But can we ever really say that anyone has done more than Jesus in this area? I do not think so.

Yet, when Jesus was crucified everyone abandoned Him except a few women. Then 50 days later there were 120 people. By human church growth standards, Jesus was average, at best. Yet when Peter preached 3000 came to Christ. This is something that we do not see of our Lord Jesus.

It is my belief that the greatest miracle is the regeneration and salvation of a wicked soul. When Jesus spoke of 'greater things' I believe He was referring to the salvation and discipleship of souls. I believe that Jesus was saying, that through His followers He is going to save more people than anyone can possibly imagine (not universalism, put your heresy stake away).

Why do we operate as though Jesus is unwilling to save when this was the reason He came? Why do we assume that it has to take a long time before someone comes to Christ? Why do we preach the gospel and expect no one to come to Christ? Ought we not simply stay home if this is the case? I submit to you these ideas come from our fallible experiences and not from Scripture. I think we are trying to protect our fruitlessness or our faithlessness. Just my thoughts.

The Impact of Missions on Kids

I want to encourage you to think about taking your kids on a mission trip. This can be highly formative for them. I have often thought of our kids as highly cautious yet in Berlin we saw them come out of their shell to a degree. This part is still coming into focus as we continue to debrief as a family on all that God has shown us.

One of the things Emma was doing that we did not know about was that she was making lists of people we had spoken with and how she could specifically pray for them. She collected the slips of paper in an empty 'Bubble Tape' container that she bought in a little German store.

I pray that my kids never grow accustomed to 'normal American Christian life.'

Language

One thing stood out on our trip to Berlin and it was universal to the team was that if we are to do ministry inside Deutschland at all, we must learn the language. As a family we invested in Rosetta Stone at the airport in Newark and yesterday we began our intensive family training. Yesterday was fun learning together as a family. It really was a beautiful time because we were all starting at basically the same level and we able to all practice together.

These are fun things to do as a family. I am looking forward to more of it! If you would like to pray, pray that we can gain the language easily!

Back To Texas

We are heading back to Texas leaving for the airport in a few minutes. It is definitely bitter sweet. We long to be home but also know what Jesus has called us to. A couple of thoughts that I am leaving with and will be pondering for a while. It is not something unique to Germany. I struggled with it in Texas and I was faced with it in Berlin. It saddens me on one hand and I see it as a warning on the other hand. It is this: those in the trenches of ministry are quick to speak of why something will not work.

It is sad because these are people we should be praying for. They are being blasted with the day to day battle and see clearly the mountains that must be passed. They take the darts from the enemy and from their own people.

Those of us who serve under them tend to either attack them or pity them and give them much latitude (not grace but latitude).

Instead we need to be commending everyone to stop looking at circumstances or situations or people and fix our eyes on Jesus. He is mighty to save. He is not frightened by German skepticism or language barriers or threats of violence.

when they tell you you are crazy, when they tell you it cannot be done, when the battle still rages, will you look to Jesus.

A great friend of mine (who was in the Corp at A&M and subsequently an officer in the marines) explained to me this week the concept of "Commander's Intent." Everyone has a plan individually but when the battle starts and plans get dumped, if you know your commanders intent then you will stay focused on that one objective. Jesus is the commander of the Lord's army - may we know Him and His intentions.

The Prayer Room

So it is very interesting the things that The Lord has been stirring our hearts to for months and yet He is doing the exact same thing in this city! This morning we went to a prayer room that has been praying for his city and the unification of the churches among this city for months! Coincidently the prayer room was located IN THE HOUSE WE ARE STAYING!!! Such a God appointed place that He has directed us to. The time in prayer this morning was one of the most powerful times I can ever remember.

Godly Planning

There is a strange tension between following the Lord and making plans. Usually when the topic of following the Spirit and not trusting our plans is brought up there is an immediate rebuttal. It goes something like this; "yes but planning honors the Lord. He is a God of order and not disorder." The rationale is that we plan because God plans. We are orderly in our accounts because God is orderly in His accounts. Sounds good right? Wrong. This is simply using God to do what we want to do.

Because God is orderly and makes plans and sets them in motion does not give us any right at all to make our own. If He is the one who makes plans and sets them in motion, why not ask Him to define the plan for you? Why not allow Him to tell you the plan?

I dare say it is for two reasons we don't do this. 1) We do not know how to hear His voice/don't think He will tell us. or 2) We have to answer to other people who want details the Lord has not yet given.

First, do we really think that God is such a being as to have a will and let us dangle in the wind trying to find it? He said His sheep hear His voice and follow Him. Meaning He speaks and is moving. Have you ever noticed how detailed the instructions were? Have you ever noticed how in battle David would ask the Lord for details about who to attack and when? Have you noticed that God answered him? God is extremely detail oriented. Look at the universe. This is no accident. Are we willing to listen and follow? Do we not trust God to lead us?

Secondly, when we let man drive our affairs we are sure to be frustrated. If you tell a person you are waiting on the Lord and He has not said yet -- well you are sure to be branded a crazy. But by faithfully walking with Him you will see and others will see that you are not quite as crazy as thought.

God is speaking, are you listening?

Immediate Obedience

I wanted to take the time to introduce you to another guy that we have walked with for a while. I will call him K to protect the innocent. In our group, he and his family came in through non-traditional means. Meaning that we met him and he was looking for a group and we invited him along. Our group was still somewhat forming when they came in. One day K confessed that there were issues he was having with a long time relationship and was convicted that he needed to take steps to repair. My wonderful wife was brilliant in asking, "what are you going to do about that?" What happened was he had the conversation early the following day.

Why was this significant? It laid a foundation of immediate obedience in our group that we saw permeate almost every member! We hear a lot about bad things permeating a group but how much more the obedience of a man throughout a group? This was a great blessing to us! I will admit our group was still getting to know one another at this time, so this characteristic may have already been present in the others but in any event the culture of immediate and radical obedience was set!

Let's commit to one another today to be immediately obedient to what the Lord has placed on our hearts. It will have lasting effects on us and others!