Missions Conference Notes

Over the past few days, we have been participating in a missions conference.  The speakers were great.  Here are a few quotes that I was able to get written down.

From Dr. Joe Arthur I heard, "Little is much if God is in it, and God will get in it if you give Him what you’ve got."

I wrote down several quotes from Dr. Tommy Ashcraft, a missionary in Mexico.  Here are some of his:

Teens in Guatemala singing about taking the gospel to the world. 

The only dream a Christian has a right to dream is to take the gospel to a hidden corner of the mission field. 

The average church member only gives $2.00 a week to missions.  That won’t even buy a Happy Meal at McDonalds!  

You have not given sacrificially until you give something you will not be able to replace. 

We complain about waste in government, but if we use any dollar except to further the gospel, it is wasted. 

What right do we have to ask a missionary to change his lifestyle in order to go to the mission field if we are not willing to change our lifestyle to send them? 

Dr. Mark Smith said,

The person sitting in your seat is the one who needs to surrender. 

Our city is not unreachable. It is just unreached.  

I came away challenged, eager to share the gospel more and excited to be part of the work that God has left His people to do.  I am both humbled and amazed that I get to be part of something that actually changes people's lives!

Do not confuse obscure preaching with deep preaching

The basic thought expressed above has been percolating in my mind on and off for months. Today I read an opinion piece in the Bangor Daily News by Stephen M. Walt. He is a Harvard professor and has been writing for decades. His article on poor academic writing included the phrase "many academics tend to confuse incomprehensibility with profundity". Aha! He is right, in academic circles and in religious circles. I believe I have benefited by this principle. I have preached a sermon that poorly presented a theological truth and been praised as "deep".

As I transitioned from a preaching ministry into a teaching ministry I considered what lessons learned from my own failings could be communicated to my future students. This is one of them. Do not confuse obscure preaching with deep preaching. Our job as preachers is to make clear the truths of the Scriptures, not obscure them. I know there are times when emergencies preclude us preparing as well as we want to. I know there are times when the passage we have chosen does not yield its fruit in due season. I know there will be a broad spectrum of doctrinal understanding in our congregations. My point is do not let this become a routine event!

“So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading. And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.” (Ne 8:8-9 AV)

Our job is to cause the people to understand the passage. Not always an easy task, but a needful one.

Multiplying Jerusalems

“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” (Ac 1:8 AV)

I had the privilege and pleasure to participate in a missions conference recently where a preacher said he explained missions as "multiplying Jerusalems." We often focus on missions as a way of fulfilling the Great Commission. We look at the way the Apostles fulfilled the Great Commission and see them planting churches. We connect the dots and see church planting as a way of fulfilling the Great Commission, and that is correct. We often fail to add the next dot in the line which is when the church plant matures and starts planting churches!

As a church seeks to fulfill the Great Commission and plants a church, in a nearby community or half-way around the world, the new church becomes the "Jerusalem" for that new congregation. When that church plant grows and the Lord lays a "Judea, Samaria, or uttermost part of the earth" on their hearts they undertake a church plant in obedience to the Great Commission. A new "Jerusalem" is created.

Whether the churches are planted by a team from a single local church or as a result of a number of churches working together through a missionary the goal is the same; bring an independent local church into being. The ultimate goal is to see churches multiplied "unto the uttermost part of the earth."

Growing Fruit

Mangoes at entrance

In Ghana fruit trees are everywhere. Mature mango, plantain and paw paw (papaya) trees are abundant at Solid Rock Baptist Bible College. They line the entrance road, snuggle up to the buildings and grow in neat rows in the area reserved for future growth. Fruit trees are wonderful things. They were among the things God gave Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They give food year by year in abundance. They require little maintenance compared to garden crops. They do require more work to plant than a garden crop, then you need to wait a few years before they mature and start to yield an abundance of fruit. In the end the fruit tree gives the greatest yield for effort invested.

PawPaw at construction site

Solid Rock Baptist Bible College is in the business of growing spiritual fruit trees as well. The college trains men to be pastors. The faculty grounds them in the Bible. They help them acquire practical experience through ministering in the campus church and with experienced pastors in other cities and towns. The faculty are all men with active ministries so they are current in the issues and battles of the day. These students go forth and yield their fruit in their season, year after year.

I recently had the privilege of teaching a module at Solid Rock Baptist Bible College. I taught 15 men on the subject of the Pastor’s Family Life. These men were mostly pastors, many more experienced in the ministry than I am. The class featured lots of discussion, some of it spirited. While I did not plant the fruit trees, I had the opportunity to fertilize them so they would be more fruitful. I had the opportunity to inoculate them against sins that could have ended their ministries. I labored in the orchard that is Solid Rock Baptist Bible College in the knowledge that God would use His Word in His servants to build His Church in Ghana, and that more abundantly.

Saying Goodbye

 

I held him in my arms and whispered in his ear, “Pray with me before you go.” 

“You start,” he said.

Quietly, with tears threatening my voice, I prayed for safety, blessing, and a fruitful ministry in Ghana.  When I was finished, he prayed for me.  Then he got in line for security. and in a few minutes, he was gone.

Now I sit at a nearby McDonalds waiting for word that he has boarded and is about to take off.  Then I’ll make the two-hour trip back to my parents’ home.

For some reason this goodbye has been harder than others.  In the past few days, there have been several times when the tears have surfaced.  On Monday I buried my face in the laundry I was carrying to the laundry room.  Yesterday I ran for the bathroom where my sobs would be unheard.  I didn’t want to dampen the present joy of having him there with me with the sorrow of the coming separation. 

Why is it so hard this time?  I wondered.  Yes, it’s always harder to be the one left behind in any separation, so that’s part of it.  This is a two-week separation instead of our usual week apart, so that’s part of it too.  Then there’s being homeless.  When he’s been gone before, I’ve had a house project I wanted to tackle while he was away with the expectation that when he returned I could greet him with a freshly painted room or a newly-organized space.  We don’t have a house this time, so there are no household projects awaiting me.  Not being part of our home church makes it harder too.  I know our church is praying for us, but it’s different when you’re not there to actually hear them pray.

So the tears are flowing down my cheeks.  My heart aches.  I wish I could have gone with him.

As he flies off to the other side of the world, my prayers go with him.  I’m glad we both look to the same Heavenly Father and that He has promised to keep Charlie securely in His hands.  I can relax and let him go. 

I have lots to do while he is gone, so I will be busy and the days will fly by, though not quite quickly enough.