It's Not About You: A Reprise

I first published this October 29, 2006. I am republishing it in remembrance of 9/11.

When our team reached Gondor we made a plan to get to the whole country with the message. Ithilian was mountainous and remote. The regional capital of Minas Ithil seemed very far away. Out in those mountains were six people groups who spoke different languages. In faith we began praying for a way to get there and people to answer the call to go. In 2001 Gimli and his wife Galadrial said they would go. It was like cutting off my right arm to help them get out there. Gimli and I had a singular vision of using disaster management to reach into the remote villages of Gondor.
But this post is not about what is comfortable, or strategic, and certainly not about what is practical. It is about what God is doing and a little bit of how he is doing it. If Ithilian is remote then Mordor was a wall. Minas Ithil sits on a river looking over to Mordor. It was locked in a permanent civil war. It was a strict muslim country where the work of the Kingdom was almost completely halted. One day Gimli left Minas Ithil to come and see us in Minas Tirith. It was a grueling twenty hour drive that he decided to do in two days. Gimli slept in a little village on the river that night and the next morning rising up very early which was his custom he prayed looking out over the river to Mordor. As he was lifting up the impossible situation in Mordor to the King he was surprised to hear the King answer him. It was not audible but just as clear as if it had been. "Do you see Mordor? I am going to change everything." Now, Gimli is not accustomed to dramatic supernatural events. He was very excited and drove all the way to Minas Tirith eagerly wanting to tell me all about what the King had said. When he arrived at my home he came in and immediately told me what had happened. He said that God was going to change everything in Mordor and that we would be able to get in at last. I told him that I had something to show him. I took him into our living room where the news was reporting the second tower coming down in the West. They were already making some Mordor connections on the news coverage. Yes, it was September 11, 2001. Gimli immediately looked at me and said, 'Well, that's it! The West will never stand for this. They will free Mordor and 20 million people will have access to the truth for the first time ever!'
Of course, that is exactly what happened. I know that the King had many lessons rolled up in that one event but I still think that the most important thing that happened was that His Kingdom was expanded. It will continue to expand. His truth will be taught in all nations among all peoples. He will be worshiped among every people, tribe, and tongue. Terrible things have happened and will happen but in the end it is not about us. It is about Him and His glory.

On Finding Water

In order to be in Gondor we need to do some kind of work. In order to have a visa in this Country we need to have a reason other than, 'we want to tell everyone about Jesus.' I do not make it a secret that I love Jesus and tell others about Him but they still wont give me a visa to do it. For that reason we do humanitarian work. Of course, we love doing humanitarian work. Jesus has called us to love people and in loving them we find that they need two things: a relationship with Him and a standard of living that will enable them to survive. We live in a very poor Country that needs multitudes of things. I hope we choose the things we do by listening to and obeying the Holy Spirit.

In order to hear His voice we pay attention to several things. One, we help people with some of their deepest felt needs. People may need sanitation but if they don't know this then there is no sense in providing it. We go to a community and asked them what they need rather than provide for them what is convenient for us to do. In following this line we have been asked repeatedly for fresh drinking water. Many people- possibly several hundred villages- need clean drinking water and are suffering greatly with water borne illnesses as a result of not having access to any. Two, we need a project that gives us sustained access. Many teams have come in and dropped off a load of much needed aid, prayed a quick prayer, and then moved on. This is somewhat helpful... sometimes, but a viable church is not likely to result from this. Too often people do aid work which makes them feel better and successful and humanitarian and even spiritual but if we measure success by lives impacted then these kinds of fly by night projects don't add up to much. We need relationship. So, digging multiple wells in villages has been very good for us. We have spent all summer in a remote village in the south, going down, spending the night, serving and being served. It has provided good ground for great conversation and the opportunity to share much love.

We have banged down the pipe for three wells so far. They are all in the lower end of the village. We need a way to get to the upper end but we need to beat the 25 feet of solid rock in order to get to the good water there. Its tough but that is ok, the longer it takes the more time we have to share.

This summer also gave me a great opportunity to get to know Beren a little better. He is the son of a co-laborer on the field who works with a different organization and the young man is courting my daughter Luthien. The two of them have just started their second year in University- he at Loyola and she at Liberty- and they came out to Gondor for the summer. He volunteered to work on our project and I put him to the test by getting his hands dirty digging deep useless holes in the ground while sharing Jesus in a remote village. He worked hard and was a good traveling companion. It tested his character and mine to work hard in 115 degree heat for six days only to abandon the hole as dry. Several holes were dug and abandoned before water was struck and he remained cheerful, prayerful, and a positive witness through out. He will need such tenacity if he wants to court my Luthien and as much patient endurance as is available through our blessed Holy Spirit if they one day marry.

We did find water, Beren with a lot of work and patience. And with equal work and more patience we may one day see the time when I walk her down an isle to meet you.

The Truth

This is an old story that deserved telling long before now. Many years ago I taught English at a language institute with two other Westerners. We always had one person who spoke English a lot better than the rest of the students and we knew that person was likely a member of the security services keeping tabs on us. In each of our classes there was a lady. She was a very nice lady who signed up for all three of our classes and sat diligently in everyone never missing a class. She was the wife of the Deputy Mayor of our city and we were not sure if she just wanted to speak English or if she too was reporting on us.

Often at the end of class we would play Pictionary to let the students practice their English and have a little fun. One day it was the Deputy Mayor's wife's turn and she drew her card with the English word on it and went to the board to draw something that would encourage the class to guess the word. She drew a simple cross and stood there. The class called out, 'cross?' 'Intersection?' 'lines?' 'Give us something else, draw more!' They called and cried out and the lady just stood there staring at the board without moving. Finally, my fellow teacher called time and they moved on to the next word. After class he asked the lady what the deal was. Why was she so stuck? She said, 'My word was 'Truth'. I drew the cross and then I just stared at it. I could not get past the fact that this was THE truth. I couldn't think of anything but the cross.'

Being a political person as the wife of the Deputy Mayor she never told us outright that she was a Christian. But one day we were discussing how to appropriately pass out Christian literature in this very restrictive environment when suddenly she told us how she did it!

Today, Rohan is a dark police state and the believers there are under constant threat of arrest and persecution. I like to think that there is still a bright intelligent lady there who knows the Truth and is telling others about it.

Introducing the New Pipen

If you have followed my blog over time you will realize that I have named the national team of guys I work with Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pipen. Frodo and Merry have their own ministries now and Sam alone is working with me from the original team. Over the years however, Pipen has been a changing position rather than a single person. About a month ago we hired a new Pipen. He was recommended to us by a national friend who said that he had been a believer for about a year. Ok, so he is young but I gave him a shot. After all, I needed a unique kind of guy for the team. The team is digging wells which is hard work and they are sharing the Gospel in a fundamentalist area which is harder work. Not just anyone can share passionately and work physically hard. (Come on Pastors you know its true!)

The first night down in the village I ask him about his testimony. I wondered what this guy might say to his prospective boss. The first words out of his mouth were that he had been a despicable person. After getting out of high school he got married, beat his wife mercilessly and was full of anger and hatred. Eventually his wife left him and he ran into some trouble with a group of guys in his neighborhood. He didn't really believe in God even though he considered himself a Muslim so, he prayed to God to help him kill these men as a way of testing if God were real. He was not able to kill the men which was such a disappointment to him that he considered killing himself. Then he remembered that he had some classmates who worked with our team up in Cair Andros. He decided he had nothing to lose so he went and visited them. They shared their faith with him and he was amazed at the way everyone on the team treated each other with love and respect. Eventually he accepted Jesus as his Lord and his life has taken a radical turn for the better.

I couldn't believe he was so honest with me! He totally opened up in front of me and the others there what a terrible person he was. I thought, 'Wow what a great testimony to the saving work of God!' This is why I love Jesus so much. He takes broken, bound, evil people and makes them kings. His story is a powerful testimony in this culture that has so little hope. Don't settle for laws, for social clubs, for religion of any kind. Seek Jesus and find the miraculous today.

Frodo In Anfalas

The team is still struggling with the first well down in Langstrand so in the meantime I thought I would tell you about Frodo. While we were digging a deep hole and not finding water Frodo, who is doing his own ministry now and is not a part of the well-digging team went down to Anfalas. Six years ago we did a lot of work in Anfalas and that story is well told on this blog back in October and November of 2006. In 2006 two families were baptized there and the small church has struggled to minister in the village ever since. Last week Frodo went down with one of his sons and spent four days there sharing his faith, encouraging the small church, and showing evangelistic films every night.

Frodo ran into Bombur and was surprised at what the Lord has been doing! Bombur was the father of a young boy who had been miraculously healed back in 2004 in Jesus name. He had also seen his daughter healed a month later. He had had Bible studies in his home and had heard more truth than most. He believed it all but could not be a follower of Jesus. He was not free to, you see, Bombur is an alcoholic. More than an alcoholic he was the village drunk who could not hold down a job nor be of any use to anybody. Frodo found someone else though. Bombur was a changed man. He said that with the encouragement of his wife and the local believers he had finally given his life to Jesus and that Jesus had set him free from alcohol. More than that the villagers have seen the change in him and he is now the deputy mayor of Anfalas!

I preach God's ability and desire to change lives. His transforming power is truly wonderful. But I stand amazed every time I see it in action as if this is the first time I ever comprehended what it is that the Spirit of God is able to do in the heart of man. Bombur and his wife will hopefully be baptized this week. Lift them up as they walk a dark and dangerous road. But it is a dark and dangerous road that leads to life.

Picking Up Stones

We finally began our long awaited well project! We have a team and a system to dig wells using a modified auger provided by the good folks at Hydromissions. We went down last Thursday and stayed through Saturday. I wish I could tell you we finished our first well but alas, I can not. This is going to be a long process and that is not a bad thing.

Sam and I went down with a couple of new guys and set up the pilot project in the village of Langstrand. We have been praying about this village for over a year now. It has an interesting history. Ten years ago another team went down to this village and showed the Jesus film in the local language. There was a guy named Golasgil who operated the film projector at the old theater nearby and they hired him to show the film all over the place. After about a year he and his wife came to faith in Jesus. They started a Bible study in their house with about 20 people from the village. After a few months however, the local Mullah through a fit. He condemned them and through them out of the local mosque (please understand that this has a huge social as well as religious meaning to them). The 20 or so seekers fled and one night a group painted a big red cross on Golasgil's gate. It was meant as a threat. After that the team that had been going down to Langstrand went elsewhere and Golasgil and his wife were on their own for several years. Sam ran into them last year and now we intend that this project of bringing clean drinking water to their village will also be a way of bringing the living water there.

The ground is rocky. We struggled to get through the first six feet and when we did we hit a two foot thick gravel pack. Drat. We tried in a couple of different places but found the soil the same everywhere. So, we started pulling rocks out of the hole. It was slow going. We thought we were stopped cold several times but each time we prayed and the way was made clear again. We have gone down 45 feet in this manner and have not hit water yet. The team goes back down tomorrow to continue the work and we hope that soon fresh drinking water will be enjoyed by all.

The first day I stood up in front of 30 or so villagers and prayed a blessing for the village and for the project. Golasgil told me later that man after man came up to him and asked him if I was a Muslim because only a Muslim who really knew God could pray like that. He laughed a told them that I was a follower of Jesus. They all know that he is still a Christian and they now know that he has invited our team to share the truth there in Langstrand. That first night Golasgil looked me straight in the eye and said, 'Strider, I am glad that you guys are here and are digging the wells. But the real reason I asked you here is to share the truth about Jesus with these people. I have invited many of them to come by and talk to you guys tonight but no one has come. We have to keep praying that they will listen.' I was very moved by this poor, uneducated man's dedication to the Kingdom. The next day as we were digging the well a two year old boy fell in an irrigation canal nearby. His older brother was screaming and crying, 'He fell, he fell!'. He had fallen right near a culvert and had been swept down the two foot in diameter pipe. Golasgil ran to the spot, stuck his arm down the hole and miraculously pulled the crying young boy out! The boy was taken away, the people who were shaking a crying with fear walked off to their homes and Golasgil sat down in the shade letting his heart rate slowly return to normal. I was the only one to walk over to him and thank him for saving the boy. No one else said anything to him at all. These villagers don't like his faith in Jesus and they don't like us coming to tell them about Jesus. We have more rocks to pull than just in that hole! Still, the Boss has us there for a reason. Saturday before we came back to Minas Tirith one of the chief men opposed to us had us all over for lunch. I was very surprised. He prayed for us- or against us, I wasn't quite sure- and he chanted a Surah of the Koran for us I think to make sure we knew where he stood.

It is good to be back working in the villages again. I am excited about the new team and the work that God has for us to do in this difficult place. As we were pulling out the rocks one by one I was for a while praying that the work would get easier. As I prayed the Lord said, 'It isn't going to get easier. Will you do it anyway?' Yes, I will and gladly.

Writing again

Well, after too long of a break I am going to tell some more stories here. After all, it isn't as if nothing much is going on. The Boss is moving and His Kingdom is expanding. It is a battle to be sure, there are victors and casualties. They deserve the honor of you knowing that the Father has been glorified through them.

I was gone for a couple of weeks for my second daughter, Goldberry's graduation. When I returned Legolas came up to me and ask if I had time to talk. I didn't but I couldn't have stopped him in his excitement if I tried. He told me that there was a 52 year old man in a village not far from Minas Tirith who had come to faith the week before. This is a man who was a strict Muslim. He had listened to what Legolas and one of his friends had had to say about Jesus years before and had rejected it. He had read some of the Bible they had given him but had not thought much more about it. One day last week as he was doing his daily prayer the Holy Spirit powerfully convicted him that what Legolas had said about Jesus was true. He got up, took a bucket of water and baptized himself. Then he went to the group meeting that Sunday and announced that he had come to faith! He has told all of his relatives that he is a Jesus follower and is encouraging them to do the same.

I like Legolas' response to the baptism. He told the new believer that it was a wonderful step of faith. Then he went on to invite the man to be baptized again before the Church as a witness to them. I was glad he didn't just say, 'Hey you did the baptism thing wrong!' He affirmed the man's faith while at the same time guiding him into deeper truth. This man will need strength to stand in the truth. He has two wives and will need God's wisdom to be able to deal honorably with both in a way that is a declaration of God's love. If he sorts it out I will for sure write a post on what he did and how God was glorified. In the meantime, there is a 52 year old former Muslim man proclaiming the good news in Gondor. God is still in the business of imparting faith in the most unlikely places and we are blessed to be witnesses of it.

The Father Is Always at Work

A few years ago I got a call about a flash flood. There were several villages affected so we went up to see if they needed any help and do an assessment. We traveled over two high passes through the mountains and then to the major city in the north of Gondor. We spent the night at a friends house there and the next morning we traveled up a valley along the edge of a huge reservoir and then up over another mountain that looked like the landscape of the moon. Then we crested a ridge and there was a beautiful city, all green and surrounded by barren granite mountains. This city is known for Islamic militants and in fact a year after we were there a wonderful local believer was martyred in that city. We drove on. We turned south to a very narrow valley and drove between great cliffs. An old fortress was up on one side of the mountain guarding the pass from ancient times. We traveled on through that valley and drove straight toward the cliff wall. I wondered how we would go on when suddenly we saw a fissure in the wall to one side and we drove through a very small pass. It reminded me some kind of old movie like 'Land of the Lost' or something. Then came the Redhorn pass and we drove through that pass and on to the next valley. There at the end was our destination and to our surprise the reported disaster was no disaster at all. Four houses had experienced some water damage but no serious need was in evidence.

But the trip was not a complete waste of time. First of all, it was a really interesting journey but more important it gave us a chance to try and connect with a group up in Redhorn. Years ago someone had wandered that way and gave out a video cassette of the Jesus Film- which is a Campus Crusade film of the life of Jesus based on the Gospel of Luke. Now, some forty people gather several times a week and watch the film. It is all they know to do as they don't have a Bible. Later a Bible was provided for them and some of them received some discipleship from the guy who was later martyred. The group still continues to meet and that to me is miraculous. How on earth, with so little input and teaching can a group of untrained believers continue in a fundamentalist Muslim area? The Father is always at work. Some time when like Elijah you think you are standing alone and everyone else has lost faith remember this group who truly stand alone, and can continue to stand because the Spirit makes them able to stand.

Fasting: When We Need Jesus More Than Food

I posted this on SBCImpact blog earlier this week and thought that I would put it here for my own records now. If you have not read it yet, enjoy.

In 1982 I read a book by Richard Foster called “Celebration of Discipline’. It has become a classic on biblical disciplines and has been read by millions. One of the chapters that struck me was the one on fasting. I had never fasted before and I could not recall that in my ten years as an active follower of Jesus anyone ever talking about fasting. So, I tried it. I just did a one day fast and since then I have done many one day fasts. Some are more spiritual than others. Some are more painful than others! But for the last several years I have not fasted at all. I would tell myself that it was not really necessary, after all we can’t make God love us more. But over the last few years as I have stumbled into middle-age I have gained weight, began feeling tired all the time, and my spiritual life has felt like my physical one. So, when a friend of mine gave me a new book on fasting by Jentezen Franklin I was immediately challenged to, in Jentezen’s words, ‘dethrone King Stomach’. I prayed about it and meditated on it for a month and then in the middle of January I began a two week fast. I broke it yesterday with the Lord’s Supper in our small house church. I learned two things that I want to share here for your encouragement.
The first thing that I want to share is that it was not that hard. I know, if you told me that you fasted for two weeks and drank only water and fruit juice I would be impressed. Don’t be. It really was a joy. Yes, I was hungry. Yes, the caffeine withdrawal gave me banging headaches the first three days. But fasting really is praying. You never forget what you are doing or why you are doing it. My constant refrain was, ‘Jesus, I need you more than food’. And He was faithful to be present to me and to fellowship with me. There has been a lot of joy these two weeks. I took naps in the afternoon sometimes but I was never really wiped out. I was dizzy sometimes but I was never immobilized as if I was starving to death. Jesus put King Stomach in its place and showed me that he does not have to rule me. I can live without him in control.
My wife asked me why I was fasting and I put it this way. Of course we can not make God love us more. We can not manipulate or force God to do anything. Our righteousness really is as filthy rags. But then, neither can I make my wife love me more. If I never took her out on a date again she would still love me. But we really enjoy dates- when we can get them! I don’t take her out to force her to do anything. I take her out because I already love her and want some dedicated time with her. Fasting is like that with God. But don’t think that God is a cheap date! He likes it when we lavish Him with extravagance and for a Westerner there is no greater extravagance than going without food for someone else. More than half of you still reading this have already come up with two dozen good reasons not to fast. This post is meant to encourage you to do it anyway. Jesus said in the Sermon on the mount that ,’When you pray…. When you give…. When you fast….’ No one would deny that praying and giving are absolute necessities for a healthy relationship with God. How can we who parse every iota of scripture and strain it for the last ounce of truth ignore fasting? I am going to fast day fasts once a week for the rest of the year and next January I am definitely going to do a two week fast again. In fact, I am already looking forward to it.
Secondly Jesus taught me something special throughout the fast. I have been on a long journey. Not physically- although I have traveled far! But my spiritual journey out of fear and into the faithfulness of God has been a long one. When I first arrived in Rohan in 1996 we found a police state that was under real oppression and fear. There were secret police in my English as a Second Language Class. There were secret police and informers in my neighborhood. Several of the guys I thought were friends turned out to be reporting on me regularly, it was brutal and every blow served to heighten fear. I remember feeling the need to cover up that I had been a Pastor in the West. I played up my Music Major credentials. It all makes me sick to think of it now. How close I came to denying my Savior as Peter had! When we moved to Gondor I determined never to make a decision based on fear. Since we have been here I and my team have proclaimed the Word boldly in dangerous places and in remarkable circumstances. But I have not ‘arrived’ by any means. Do I proclaim in faith? Usually? Sometimes? When fundamentalist Islam has returned to Gondor and the Sulafis are gaining strength am I bold? Sulafi’s by the way are an ugly brand of fundamentalist Islam who make the Pharisees of Jesus day look like weenies. Their fear-laden legalistic sickness is spreading across Gondor like a disease right now. What can I say in the face of that? On the first day of the fast God led me to 2 Corinthians 10: 4-5:
For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ
Paul said that he destroyed arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God. Can I do that? If the same Spirit that did it through Paul resides in me how can I not? We can and we must proclaim the truth in the face of the lies told about God. He is faithful, He is loving, and He did send His only Son to die for us. Jesus was crucified and has risen from the dead! These words spoken in my power mean nothing. But when the spirit of God lives in us these words take on divine power that tears apart the works of the evil one. The last day of the fast this lesson continued with Isaiah 54: 16- 17:
Behold, I have created the smith who blows the fire of coals and produces a weapon for its purpose. I have also created the ravager to destroy; No weapon that s fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, declares the LORD.
Ok, Isaiah might could refute every tongue that rises against him in judgment but can I? Again, if we are talking about Strider’s abilities probably not. But if our faith is not in our abilities but in the power of God then who can stand against us? I will proclaim the Gospel boldly and the Lord will vindicate me Himself. This is a powerful promise to me and I hope it is to you also. I hope you understand that I don’t write this to brag about my great discipline. I did not fast to impress you or anyone else. I just really enjoyed my date with Jesus and I encourage you all to go and do the same.

Dreams and Visions

The atmosphere in Gondor has been getting darker and it isn't because it is winter. Fundamentalist Islam has been spreading among the population again and is being taught everywhere here in Minas Tirith. The Government is doing all it can to stop it but it is growing just the same. Sulafi Islam is a fundamental branch of Islam whereby the adherents teach that only the Koran is authoritative. The Hadiths, traditions and other books are not to be trusted. The Sulafis are bullies who go door to door in their neighborhoods and coerce and threaten people to agree with them.
One of Legolas's relatives who goes to his house church has a cousin by marriage who is a Sulafi. She accosted Legolas's relative and insisted she repent of her heresy of being a follower of Jesus. This lady actually asked Legolas's relative what books she read. She gave her a New Testament. The lady read it for several days. She was confused. She wanted to know whether it was true and one night she had a dream where Jesus appeared in her room and told her the book was true. The next day she went straight to Legalos and asked him if the New Testament was true. He said, 'Why are you asking me when God has already given you the answer?' She is confused. Her whole world is turned upside down and if she does find the faith to be obedient to Christ it will cost her everything. Of course, if she pays the price she will find that she gave up exactly nothing and gained eternity. Pray for her and for the many like her who are in bondage to the lies of the enemy.

A Long Walk in Mordor and the Way of the Cross

I was going to write a post on missiology. I have list of principles that we work by, a philosophy of ministry. But then I decided to tell a story instead. In truth we don't live by principles or guidelines. We don't follow a program, we follow the God-Man Christ Jesus. He is our guide, our shepherd and He leads us into truth- and much more. He leads us on a dangerous adventure. He leads us into battle for the souls of men and women. He leads us to the establishment of His Kingdom in enemy territory. This story illustrates for me what it means to be a follower of Jesus, who we are and where we are going. Where we are going is the Cross, what we find on the other side is a resurrection.
In June of 2005 I went on Stateside Assignment for three months. As soon as I left there was a disaster in northern Mordor and our team was asked to help. They gave some immediate assistance to some families who had been through a flash flood that came down their narrow valley and washed away several flour mills and a few water canals. While they were there a man came up to them and asked if he could have a New Testament. The team assumed this man was a seeker and immediately gave him one. He in turn showed it to everyone in the village and loudly denounced us as proselytizers who were only there to convert them not help them. I came back in the fall and we made a plan to complete the project. We would provide them with materials they could not get so that they could fix the flour mills and the water canals. I live in Gondor and it is a nine hour drive from the Capitol to the border of Mordor where this village sits just across the river. There is a new bridge there but no road on the other side in Mordor. So, once we spent a week or so getting all the various permissions to take stuff across we went down. We spent several days in Ithilian on this side of the border and then we drove up to the bridge. The plan was that I would walk across the bridge with two of my national staff and the other two would present the various permissions to the various agencies and send the aid across the river on a raft in the morning. The guys said to me, 'Strider, you know it is a 15 mile walk to the village are you up for that?' I told them to 'shut up' I was not that old, I could do it just fine. I would eat those words badly. I was ready to walk 15 miles but I would soon learn that it was more than 10 miles straight up a steep mountain and then a little less than 5 harrowing miles down a deep gorge to the village which sat on a steep river bank. My legs were cramping furiously, I was drenched with sweat and we plodded on and on into the night. We reached the village at about 10:30 pm and I hoped we could just go to bed and meet with everyone in the morning. No dice. The village leaders piled into the house we were staying at and the meeting began right then. The first thing they did was to complain about the New Testament given earlier. I assured them that we would not give out any other literature. My team was critical of this decision but I told them that I was not going to get kicked out of this village for passing out literature when almost no one in the village could read! Then they asked us how long it had taken us to come and when we told them they replied, 'Five hours! We usually walk that in three, what is wrong with you?' So much for the foreigner coming in and being treated like a king. Anyway, I told them our plan to put the aid across the river in the morning. They agreed with the plan and we finally went to bed. The house owner slept in the doorway with his automatic rifle in his lap so that we would feel safe.
The next morning we got up and I limped down to the river. We waited all day. About 11 am the guys showed up across the river and began setting up the raft. An hour later they still had not sent anything across. Why not? It was only 50 yards across the river and we shouted back and forth. Apparently there was a problem with the paperwork. So, they went back into town to figure it out and we waited. We waited all day. At 5:30 pm they came back. No go. The local officials would not recognize our paperwork from the Capitol. We were discouraged. Sam who was with me shouted across to Merry, 'Get over here now!' Merry shouted back, 'No, they said that anyone who came across the river would be arrested.' Sam shouted again, 'We agree!' Yeah, me too. Much better to spend the night in jail than walk back over that mountain. But they didn't come. We turned and walked back up the hill completely depressed. We had been working on this for nine days now and still we couldn't get the aid across. Now we would spend the night here in the village and then trek back over the mountain. I looked up and said aloud in English, 'I know why you want us here one more night but you are going to have to get me back over that mountain in the morning.'
When we reached the house again all the village elders gathered. It was bad. They complained long and loud. 'Why can't you guys get the aid across?' 'Don't you know what you are doing?' 'Other agencies can do this why can't you?' 'We waited all day for nothing!' In defense I had nothing. No plan B no next step. I didn't know what was wrong and I couldn't fix it. After an hour or so of abuse they fell to talking about what they know all too much about. Drugs. A lot of drugs cross this border and these guys all know about it. I looked at Pipen and said, 'Have you told these guys your story?' Pipen has a dramatic testimony of how he was a drug addict and tried to kill himself but God miraculously saved his life physically and spiritually. He told his story to a rapt audience. They had never heard of anyone actually getting better! When he finished one of the men exclaimed, 'So, this drug addict has come to help us!' The local sheriff stopped him short and said, 'Quiet! This man has repented.' Very powerful. Slowly, everyone left. By 10 pm there was just our host and his nephew, a man I called the student because he was 18 and one of the only guys in the village who could read. Our host said, 'So, who is Jesus anyway?' Sam said, 'Who do you think He is?' The host said, 'I don't know anything about Jesus. I have never heard any stories or teachings about Him.' So, Sam started with the Old Testament and for two hours explained exactly who Jesus is. During the last 20 minutes as he shared about Christ's death and resurrection the Student sat with his mouth open dumbfounded. Then we went to bed.
At 3 am the Sherrif came by and got us up. He walked with us back over the mountain. I had no pain or tiredness at all. My legs didn't cramp and I felt good. When we got back to Gondor and found Frodo and Merry we realized what had happened. Nothing crosses that border without a bribe and they would not take a bribe from a foreign organization. Nine days on the road wasted. Or was it? I went to a guesthouse while Frodo tried a couple of more angles. Sam and Pipen went to sleep immediately but I could not. As I lay there in the guesthouse the Holy Spirit spoke to me very clearly. It was not through my skills or abilities, not through money or power that His Kingdom was to go forward. I Corinthians 2:3-4 says it this way:
"And I came to you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power."
We all want to proclaim the Word with power. We all want a 'demonstration of the Spirit'. But are we willing and able to go through the humiliation it takes to get there? There is no room for power politics in the Kingdom. The road we are on must lead to the Cross. Only as we go to the Cross can we find a resurrection on the other side.
By the way, we did get the aid across a week later by giving it to someone else and they bribing their way across. A year later we were driving by that village and our host was over on the Gondor side. He said that he, the Student, and two others met everyday to listen to a fifteen minute shortwave radio broadcast in their language. The programs are all about Jesus. Is that a Church? I don't know. I didn't report it on my Annual Statistical Report! But when I get to Heaven and stand before the throne don't be surprised if we all discover that the most important thing I have ever done in my life was to fail, fall, be humiliated, and proclaim the Gospel on that dark night in that dark place. Brokenness is a key component of my philosophy of ministry. I hope it is yours also.

Happy New Year

No New Year's resolutions here. Just wishing you all a happy New Year and trusting that you will draw nearer to our Lord, that you will find in Him all joy, and that your life will resound with His glory in 2010.

Paul Had It Easy In Corinth!

When we read through Corinthians in the New Testament we see that the Apostle Paul had some pretty serious issues to deal with. Gross sexual immorality, division, bad doctrine, and bad behavior seemed to define the young Church in Corinth. As Paul wrote to correct these things he crafted 1 Corinthians 13, the Love Chapter. It stands as one of the most beautiful things ever written and I think that Paul intended it to be the heart of his answer to the problems the Corinthians were facing. It was written almost 2000 years ago and yet we are so far from experiencing a 10th of what he described.

I was up in the north of Gondor last week teaching a class on Missiology for a local Bible College. A friend of mine whom I had worked with five years ago found out I was in town and took me out to eat one evening. It was great to see him. I asked him how he was and how his relationship with his church was. He had often been at odds with his church in the past and he was often in the wrong, so I wondered how he would answer me. He left his church about a month ago. I was not too sorry to hear about this as he described the church he was going to now. There are only five churches in all of the north of Gondor, so not too many to choose from! But why did he leave his first church?

About six weeks ago a broken, homeless, middle aged man came to the service. He had been there before. The church had tolerated his on-again off-again attendance for a few years. He was homeless for a reason, he had lots of issues. That Sunday he came forward to repent and asked to be baptized. The church voted on the baptism as was their custom. Every hand went up for 'no'. Every hand except that of my friend. He stood up and said, 'All of you who have taken so little effort to raise your hands for 'no', all of you who have such a strong opinion, how many of you visited this man over the last year as he was struggling?' No one had. 'I visited him several times. Ok, I should have done more, I didn't help enough but I tried to do something. I tried to encourage him some. Can you just send this man away now? Can we really throw out a man who has asked us for help?' The Pastor stood and asked that my friend leave. So my friend said, 'I am sorry for bothering you. Please forgive me if I have offended you but if you can, please help this man.' And then he walked out. I asked my friend what the objection to this man being baptized was. He said that every one knew he still dipped tobacco. Such an offense! Two days later the Pastor came to my friend and apologized. He said he should not have spoken to him rudely and thrown him out of the church. My friend said that he forgave him but now he was going to a different church.

I asked my friend if he thought this man was really ready to be baptized and he said, 'I don't know. I can't see into his heart but I know that he came for help. I know that he wanted to change.' He went on to explain something that touched me deeply. 'I can't say if this man was a truly repentant man who was ready to fully follow Christ. I do know that when I stand in Heaven before Jesus he will never say to me, 'You were too forgiving, too loving, too accepting.' He will never condemn us for welcoming and loving others but what will he say to us about any of His children that we might turn away?'

What indeed.

Paul had to contend with a lot in Corinth but I wonder if he would write such a grace filled letter to this church? I wonder if he would be so patient with us?
Maybe, Paul had it easy in Corinth after all.

Teaching a Bible College Class

Some friends of mine started a Bible college here to stop the bright and talented young believers from leaving to go to the US for Bible college never to return. I have been very supportive of this effort since I can either help do it right or complain about how someone else has done it wrong. That being said this has been a challenging week. I am teaching 40 hours of missiology this week to a class of 12. I will go up north and teach it again next week. This eight hours of teaching a day for five days is brutal but as I sit and drink a cup of coffee and prepare to start the next session I thought I would share with whoever is left reading this occasional blog a great chart given to me by my good friend Ted Sandyman.

Christian approaches to Muslims

If we see Muslims as …
Enemies
Our approach will be …
Attack!/Defend!
Our heart attitude will be ..
hate

If we see Muslims as …
Foreigners
Our approach will be …
Separate Coexistence
Our heart attitude will be ..
Indifference

If we see Muslims as …
Poor, uncivilized, uncultured
Our approach will be …
Invite them to be like us (join us)
Our heart attitude will be ..
Pharisaic/condescending

If we see Muslims as …
Rivals
Our approach will be …
Polemic debate
Our heart attitude will be ..
proud

If we see Muslims as …
Human beings
Our approach will be …
Respectful dialogue
Our heart attitude will be ..
listen and learn

If we see Muslims as …
Unresponsive
Our approach will be …
resigned to do nothing
Our heart attitude will be ..
hopeless

If we see Muslims as …
Lost people Jesus died for
Our approach will be …
Salt/light (demonstrate love)
Preach the Gospel (speak truth)
Pray for their needs (show power)
Become all things to all people (Pauline)
Our heart attitude will be ..
Love

I like Ted's chart. Why not apply it to the people you meet today?

A Fireside Story

We have had several interesting experiences with fire and this fine Saturday I thought I would share one with you. You might consider this a new take on the term fiery trials.

Back in 1997 the civil war had just ended and the people of Gondor were in a fierce battle to see who would get a seat at the power sharing table. There was gunfire in the streets every night and many were assassinated or just burgled and killed. Usually the gunfire would pick up just after dark and continue until around midnight. Sometimes it went on until 2am but not usually later than that. One night I was awoken by a huge boom followed by a series of crackles that sounded like semi-automatic gun fire. I rolled over and noticed that it was 4am. I said out loud, 'Come on guys, go to bed!' Just then the phone rang. I then thought oh no! Is this something to do with one of our team! Sure enough it was Gimli who lived just two hundred yards up the hill from us. "Strider! Our neighbors house has just blown up. Can you get up here and help us get our stuff out of our house before it catches fire and burns down?" Gimli's house had an adjoining wall and roof with the house next door to him. I told him that it sounded like a lot of gunfire out there but I would try. I stuck my head of out our front gate and our street was quiet. I could see the fire raging up the hill with flames going up more than 50 feet in the air. I walked gingerly up the street. I know that 'gingerly' is not the right word- well, it is the right word but it was a silly thing to do! Anyway, I got to the corner and there was a guard outside a Red Cross house. I asked him what was going on and he said he didn't know. He had not seen anybody but it sure sounded bad up there. So, up there I went. When I got to Gimli's house I could see the problem. There was no gunfire. The fire was blazing so bad that the asbestos roofing sheets were exploding in loud crackling burst. I ran into Gimli's house and we started taking stuff out and putting it on a porch on the other side of the yard from the fire. I felt the adjoining wall with the house that was on fire. It was not hot at all. More than that the roof that ran as a single roof over to the neighbor's side was not burning. The fire stopped at the property line! We got everything out- including the extremely heavy 286 computer that I carried myself. To be fair Gimli told me to leave it. He was right, it wasn't worth it. But then the fire department came. I know I was surprised to see them. They negotiated with the neighbors for a price and then they put the fire out. Yes, you read that right. It turned out that the natural gas had spiked and their kitchen had blown up. The next day everyone exclaimed what a miracle it was that God saved Gimli's house. The fire was huge and hot and it had no effect on anything on Gimli's side. Gimli told the neighbors about Jesus and while no one came to faith right then it had to be a powerful witness. Gimli has never forgotten that I braved the seemingly dangerous streets to come and help him. Of course, I consider my most valiant effort that night to have been lifting that 286 computer.

When the Road Is Too Long

Last week we were invited to a wedding out in the Argonoth. The village there is about four hours away over a couple of small passes and then across a river. We have done a couple of projects out there and there are several people who have shown interest in listening to the truth. Arwen and I got the boys ready and we headed out about one in the afternoon so that we had plenty of time to get there by the six o'clock start time of the wedding. Only one problem, it rained. All day. When we got into the passes and over the main dam in Gondor there was roadwork that had turned into pure mud, landslides, stuck cars, tractors shoving earth every direction. It was a nightmare. One humorously frustrating thing happened. As we waited for a large landslide to be cleared out the cars behind us started passing us and forming a second lane, then a third, finally a fourth lane was formed waiting for the road to reopen. When the road did finally open we discovered that the cars on the other side had done the same. Two sets of four lanes of traffic converged and no one could get by anyone else. I thought it was pretty funny. Arwen made frustrated hand gestures to the cars trying to pass us on the inside. When it was all said and done we reached Osgilioth about six o'clock and it was dark. We still needed an hour and a half more to reach the Argonoth and there was no way I was going to try and cross that river in the dark in the rain. I had a friend who lived in Osgilioth who I owed a visit to anyway. We stopped by his house and it was dark. It turned out that there was no electricity but he and his family were all there and very happy to see us. We came in and sat down and they began to prepare to feed us. Several neighbors came over and we sat and talked all evening. I was getting frustrated though. I was looking for an opportunity to share truth and it just was not happening. My friend was in and out serving the guests and the guests were talking among themselves except when they wanted to hear a funny story or two from me. The chance to share a Biblical story was not coming and I was concerned that I was somehow missing a good opportunity.

Finally, the neighbors left. Arwen put the boys down in an adjoining room and my friend and I talked into the late night. I was still not really finding an opportunity to share spiritual truth. Then, at 11:30pm he shared some personal struggles he was having at work. He shared about struggles with his boss, ethical issues with his department. He wanted to quit but that would be a breach of contract from his side, making him look bad. Then, at nearly midnight I shared some stories of Jesus. Then just after midnight I shared truth about our Lord and encouraged him to trust in God. He listened and agreed with me. My friend has heard a lot of Gospel over the years and it had never really touched him before. Now, it seemed to resonate, 'I need God in my life.' He did not commit to Jesus right there but for the first time he wanted me to pray for him and he was determined to do it 'God's way' in his decisions at work. I was amazed. It may seem like a small step to some of you but it is the biggest step I have ever seen him make in ten years of knowing him.

We have a saying on our team that says that if you can't spend the night don't bother going. I don't always live by this but this story reminds me of the truth of it. When we spend the night with people we stay past the polite guest phase and hang around for the deep conversation phase of the day. The vast majority of decisions to follow Jesus come after 10 pm. At least, that is what I have heard from those who claim to know. If we are not staying late then we miss the chance to talk to people when they are finally ready to slow down enough to think deeply about life. Let us go and proclaim boldly the truth of God's love, and as long as we are going we should spend the night.

Of Traveling, Documents, and Stamps

I have not told of many of my travel adventures because they don't always have a devotional point. Some are funny and other stories are just incredible but I generally like to write things that glorify God. But then again I am wanting to get some of these stories down in written form so.... With acknowledgment of the fact that I could do nothing and go nowhere without God's guidance, strength, and protection here is one of my favorite traveling stories.

Back in 1996-7 I lived for a year and a half in Rohan before moving to Gondor. There was much to arrange and figure out. How do I get there? How will I get a visa? Where will I live? With whom will I work? All these needed answering before actually moving to Gondor so I made a lot of trips across the border in 1997. 19 to be exact and after years of therapy I will be much better, thanks for asking. There are various routes to get from Rohan to Gondor and I will simplify the story by describing the routes as follows. The Southern Route involved a 12 hour drive to a border guarded by a lot of young thugs. It was the time of the civil war and the Southern Border was dangerous. The Northern Border was the easiest to cross, the only problem was that I was in Southern Rohan wanting to go to Southern Gondor. North was easy, but way out of the way. The Middle Border was very tough. It was the closest to me and the shortest route to where I was going but the border guards were always tough and then there was the 12,000 foot pass to contend with once you crossed. The Middle Route could be crossed and Minas Tirith reached in as little as six to eight hours if all went well- it only ever went that well once but it did happen! Anyway, so after a long introduction here we are, me going over the pass to Minas Tirith and spending a very nice week in the big city working out housing plans etc. I heard that there was an in-country flight from Capitol of Minas Tirith to the Gap of Rohan- right next to the Middle Border and only an hour away from my home in Rohan. Too good to be true. But even though the flight was infrequent it was going this week so I got a ticket and boarded the plane. It was a little 17 seater with two prop engines and it looked very old so I took a picture of it before I boarded. The pilot saw me take a picture and noticed that I had a decent 35mm camera and he invited me up to the cockpit as soon as we took off. I half stood, half crouched in the doorway of the cockpit for the whole forty-five minute flight. He would veer over to the left and say, 'Look, there is a beautiful mountain lake. Take a picture!' Then he would veer over to the right and he would say, 'Look, there is the mountain pass that the cars go over. Take a picture!' Back and forth over the beautiful mountains of Gondor we traveled. As we approached the airport I took a final picture of the town and the runway and then told him I needed to sit down and fasten my seatbelt. The pilot was puzzled by this. Why? When I did sit down I noticed a couple of things. One, I was the only one on the plane with my seatbelt on, including the pilots. And two, someone had thrown up in the middle of the aisle, probably a result of our veering back and forth over the mountains so I could get my pictures.

When we landed I was stopped at the gate of the airport and told that since I was a foreigner I had to register- even though this was an in-country flight. No big deal. I registered and then started to leave. A soldier came over and told me that I could not leave yet. The Security Forces guy wanted to talk to me. I waited around. Finally, as the last taxi in the parking lot was leaving I ran out and got in. As we began to leave the soldier stopped us and said I could not leave until I talked to the Security Forces guy. He had the gun so I got out and watched the last taxi drive away. This annoyed me so I was not in a very agreeable mood when the Security Forces guy finally got around to talking to me. He searched though my bag. Twice. Three times. He asked me a lot of questions and then he would leave for a while, then come back and asked some more. I was starting to get really fed up when the soldier said, 'Look, he just wants some money. Give him a little money and he will let you go.' That did it. I was determined now. I had saved eight hours by not having to drive and if this guy wanted to hang out with me all day then that was just what we were going to do. The old traveling rule was, 'If you have time you don't need money.' So, I smiled, I talked. I was patient and I told him that there was no way he was getting my money. A funny thing happened at that point. He found a $100 bill and said, 'Oh!' as if this was a big deal. I told him it was my money and it was no big deal. He said that since I was going to Rohan I had to have a certificate for the money. Now, at that time Rohan used these currency declarations but Gondor did not. I told him that I would get one when I got to the border. For a man looking for any excuse to harrass someone this was not good enough. I found an old certificate that I had but interestingly, it had no stamp. In this part of the world a document without a stamp is no document at all. Well, we went round and round about this and then went to his Security Headquarters where we went round and round about this for an hour and a half more. Finally, when he realized I would not give him anything and he was thoroughly fed up with me he put a stamp on my Rohan Certificate and let me go. I walked into town found a taxi and went to the border to go home. Once at the border the usual gang searched my bag again. As they searched and harassed me- they were never nice at the Middle Border- I noticed that my camera was gone. It was a large, 35mm Pentax in a black bag about the size of a loaf of bread. It was not in my bag. I told the guys that that Security Guy must have stolen it. They actually felt sorry for me and let me go. I went home and tossed my bag on the bed and told my wife what happened. Then I went and unpacked my bag and there was the camera! It was a miracle but what kind of miracle was it? Were the guards and myself at the border blinded from seeing it or is the Security Guy wondering what happened to the camera he stole? I don't know.

Two weeks later I was back in Minas Tirith. There was no flight to the Gap of Rohan so I took a taxi to the Southern Border Crossing. At that time there were around 30 to 40 armed thugs with a bad attitude waiting to harass anyone wanting to cross. I got out of the taxi and was surrounded by these guys- mostly young kids in their late teens. They took my passport and handed it around and then they asked if I had any dollars. I replied that I had $200 on me at the time. They told me I had to give it to them and I refused. They said I had to have a Certificate for the money. I told them that Gondor didn't use these Certificates but they replied that that was not their problem. If I did not have a Certificate then I had to give up my money. Just then I remembered that I had the same bag as I had had two weeks previously. I took out the old Certificate from my bag and said, 'Look, I have a Certificate for the money!' They said, 'No, that is a Rohan Certificate. You need a Certificate from Gondor.' I told them to look at the stamp. When they looked at the stamp that the Security Guy had stamped my document with two weeks before they broke out laughing. The stamp clearly said 'Gondor' on it! They called their Commanding Officer over and told him I had beaten them at their own game. They let me go and I said a quiet 'thank you' to God for the way he guided me through the weird wild circumstances that is Middle Earth.

Avoiding Fear in the Midst of Turbulent Times

Our office administrator needs prayer. She is really struggling with a difficult family situation and she is running out of options. She is a 25 year old single woman who has been a follower of Jesus for over five years. She has worked in our office since February this year and she is very beautiful, intelligent, and spiritual. Why we can't find any Christian young men for her is beyond me. One of her Church elders has tried all year without success. Now her parents have decided that she needs to be taught a lesson and the best way to straighten her out is to marry her off to the most difficult Muslim man they can find. In case you thought your life was tough in any way let me give you a window on hers. She comes home every night to her family who tells her that it is painful for them to look at her. They yell at her and demean her as much as they can because they hate her faith in Jesus. She goes into her room with her cat and shuts the door every evening because she is not welcome to sit with the family. Every month she gives them her whole paycheck and she obeys them in everything they tell her to do- even when they forbid her to go and meet with believers on Sundays, which they do frequently. I met with her the other day and she was really discouraged and on the verge of panic. She had had a horrific fight with her Mom who said that she must marry this latest Muslim guy. She met with the guy and he told her she would have to quit work, renounce her faith, and stay at home. He told her to 'say goodbye to your western clothes and your friends'. Like all young girls in the city she wears western style dresses but there is a move towards a much more radical Islamic society here. The Government is fighting it but losing. Anyway, in response to her desperate situation I was reminded of a story. I will tell you what I told her.

We met Elanor over ten years ago. She was a translator on a medical project for our aid agency. She worked with a woman doctor from the West for a couple of years. During that time she became a follower of Jesus. Her parents did not know it and she kept her faith a secret for a long time. I don't remember how they found out but when they did it was bad. We did not know that they did not know about her faith. If we knew the situation we would have counseled her differently because I hate the secret believer situation and we have always worked against it. Elanor's father was a diabetic and had some serious complications as a result. The Western doctor gave him free medical care for a year but it did not help the situation. They took Elanor and locked her in her room. Her father would come home everyday from work and beat her pretty severely. Then her grandfather would read her the Koran every night. They took away her Bible, they forbid her to meet with her friends, they never let her out. This went on for months. She had one girlfriend who would sneak up to her outside window and talk, pray, and encourage her. She was even able to smuggle in a Bible but it was later found. That had really terrible consequences as you can imagine. Elanor has one of the most beautiful smiles you have ever seen. She literally radiates joy and light. This drove her family crazy. Literally. As the beatings and the harassment went on she became more and more despondent. One day, as she was crying after a particularly bad beating she called out to God and asked where He was in all of this. "Why can't I hear you anymore? Where are you, God?" Just then she heard a voice in the room. An audible voice that said in her native language of Rohan (Yes, God speaks Rohan apparently!), "It is because of your fear that you can not hear me. Fear drowns out my voice." She dedicated herself to trusting Him entirely after that. She needed to because after that the beatings grew worse and the threats to kill her increased and became much more credible. Finally, she escaped and stayed hidden in the village of her friend for three months. When she came back her mother was very grateful to have her return and said there would be no more beatings and no more discussion of her faith if only she would stay. They honored that and she lived with them for a time. Then she went to the West and did a year in a Bible College. I hate it when this happens because very often people don't come back and if they do they have a Western expression of the faith that makes no sense to their home country. Elanor did come back and immediately realized the barriers she would have to overcome. She has overcome them and now she dresses very traditionally and expresses her faith in a very culturally appropriate way. She married a very fine young man who is a sincere follower of Jesus. He probably has as beautiful smile as she does. They work together in a village to the south and the way they radiate Jesus is one of the most beautiful things I have seen in Middle Earth.

But for our office administrator we are at the beginning of this story. She has a long road ahead and many trials. The same Jesus who was with Elanor is with her and I am confident that His glory will be made known in wonderful ways in this situation.... as long as fear is silenced.

Walking by Faith with the One Who is Faithful

This is going to be a complicated post with two major parts. Sorry, but I have a good story to tell and some issues to get off my chest. Let's start with the story.
Our local accountant had a premature baby last week. The little lady is just short of 3 pounds and is in an incubator in Hospital Number One. Arwen and I went to see her the other day and had a nice visit. Coming down the stairs from the fourth floor (why do they make pregnant women walk to the fourth floor?) I was reminded of Arwen's second miscarriage in 1997. It was a difficult time for a lot of reasons. In 1997 Minas Tirith was reeling from the end of the civil war. Warlords vied for control with armed gangs of men harassing everyone in sight. In November of 1997 a small gang took a Western couple hostage and eventually the lady was killed in a rescue attempt. Our NGO that was run by another agency at the time was in an uproar with broken relationships everywhere and lots of conflict. The Country of Gondor had nothing and was on the verge of being a failed state. Our team was working hard to help people and share Jesus with all who would listen. It was then that we got word that my supervisor was coming to visit. We were sure he would make us evacuate. We tried to make contingency plans to demonstrate that we were being careful. We varied our routes and times as we traveled and I walked around my car to inspect it before getting into it every time I went some where. Having said that we were never afraid and we went places that in hind sight was probably quite dangerous. Arwen was 14 weeks pregnant when my boss was due to arrive. The day before he came she began bleeding. Then she miscarried. She still cooked for us. There was a lady doctor from the West working with our NGO and she took Arwen to Hospital Number One for a D and C. The local medical system was totally nonfunctional but the doctor was able to get some things together and we took Arwen the to Hospital and walked her to the fourth floor. She had a shot of something to deaden pain and make her sleepy. She had the D and C and then, since it was November and it was darn cold outside and inside we took her home. As she started down the stairs I helped her and I said, 'Are you ok, are you still drugged?' She said she was fine. Then she collapsed and very fortunately I caught her. I picked her up in my arms and carried her the rest of the way down the stairs. When we reached the lobby there were ten chairs and more than 20 people there. I stood with Arwen semi-conscious in my arms. I told the doctor to get her car and pull it around front and I would wait here out of the rain. I was concerned that I would have to stand but when I turned back around the room was empty. Those folks did not know what was wrong with that foreign woman and they didn't want to know! I sat down in one of the many empty seats and waited for the car. The other day I told Arwen that I would write up this story but I didn't really have a spiritual point to make. She was quite surprised. She said, 'What are talking about? God provided everything we needed right when we needed it. Gondor was a mess and had nothing and yet when we needed it we had a doctor, and medicine, and support from good friends.' Well, of course she is right. God did all that and more. He always does.

So, on to my rant. A guy came to me the other day from Mordor. He said he needed help to get to the West. I asked him his story and this is what he told me.
"I am a family practice doctor from Mordor. I work with a couple of foreign doctors and I am now a believer. Only my wife knows this and I think my father a little bit. Last week my father found my Bible. He accused me of being a Christian but I denied it and said no, a lot of people want to read this book. He said no, you are a Christian I think. So, I went to the Gondor consulate that day and told them I had to leave immediately, could they get me a visa. They said no, but some guys outside the consulate sold me a visa for $800. Now my family- wife and two children- are here. We have registered with the Gondor Officials and now we have no money left. I can not get work here legally and I don't know what to do."
I asked him, 'Did anyone threaten you? I don't understand, didn't your father help you leave?' No, no one threatened him but being a known believer is a big problem in Mordor. He had to leave. I suggested that he return and he was terrified of the idea. That was out of the question.

Now, let me be clear here. I have no sympathy for this guy. Maybe I should but I don't. If you want to tell me that you are afraid ok. But if you start to tell me that the situation is hopeless I have a big problem with that. Mordor, this situation- and your situation- are not bigger than God. Is life tough? You bet it is. Can I promise that man that if he has faith then no harm will come to him or his family? Nope, I can't and I won't. But our God is faithful. He will walk through even the Valley of Shadow of Death with us. He has walked there with me more than once. Running away is not the answer to anything. Recently a friend of mine asked me what he should do in a very difficult situation and I told him. 'I don't know what you should do but the answer lies with faith. Whatever takes more faith is what pleases God and so I think you should do whatever it takes you more faith to do.' Dangerous advice perhaps but it is based not on our ability to see, understand, or act. It is based on God who is faithful. Any act of faithlessness on our part is not an indictment of our own weakness it is an accusation. When we fail to act because of faithlessness we are accusing God of being smaller than our problems and faithless to act. He is not small or faithless. Stand and see His salvation.

Arwen On Joy

Most husbands, if they have any sense at all brag on their wives occasionally. I don't do this near as much as Arwen deserves so today I am posting a paper she wrote recently that surprised me. A friend of ours asked her to give advice to some struggling folks about finding joy. Rather than a three sentence e-mail reply about having hobbies or getting enough exercise this is what Arwen wrote.

Keeping Joy Alive


Before thinking about how to keep joy alive, I decided that I had better look up the definition of the word joy. Paul tells us in 1 Thess 5:16 to be joyful always, and follows with the equally challenging command – pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances.

From Webster:
Joy – 1. a very glad feeling; happiness, great pleasure, delight 2. anything causing such feeling 3. the expression or showing of such feeling.

Enjoy – 1. to have or experience with joy; get pleasure from; relish

Enjoy oneself – to have a good time; have pleasure

Rejoice – to be glad, happy or delighted; be full of joy

What gives joy?
Here are some things that bring joy according to Scripture:
1. The Lord and His presence. Ps4:7 “You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound.” See also Ps 28:7, Ps 21:6
2. Ps 19:8 “The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart.”
3. Our children. Prov 23:24,25 and Prov 27:11
4. Seeing justice done. Prov 21:15
5. People being healed and evil spirits being driven out. Acts 4:8
6. Coming to faith. Acts 16:34 (the jailer)
7. Salvation. 1 Peter 1:8,9 “…you are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” See also Luke 10:20
8. Finding others walking in the truth. 2 John 4
9. Being with other believers. 1 John 12
10. Other believers. I Thess 2:19,20; I Thess 3:9
11. When we know that people know about Jesus. I John 1:4
12. Being in the right place. The Israelites “joy was complete” when they returned from exile. Neh 8:17
13. A cheerful look from others. Prov 15:30
14. When others are concerned about us. 2 Cor 7:7
15. The love of friends. 2 Tim 1:4; Philemon 7
16. Perfume and incense Prov 27:9

There are many other references to joy in the Scriptures, not to mention all the references about rejoicing.

My thoughts about things that bring joy
Prov 21:15 says that “when justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous…” When I read that I recognized that the opposite of that is also true, that when injustice is done it brings heartache. In this country we see a lot of injustice. People are treated unfairly and wrongly accused every day. For me, that is one thing that makes living here so difficult. I see people being treated unjustly and there is nothing that I can do about it.
We can see what other things steal our joy by looking at the opposites of other verses. For example not being in the Lord’s presence, not being with other believers, and not receiving cheerful looks can bring us down. There are so many things that can steal our joy. When we live in places that are unjust, or where we don’t receive cheerful looks or when there are no other believers then I think we have to focus on other things that can bring joy.
The presence of the Lord gives us joy. That is something that other people can’t take away from us. We cannot flee from the presence of the Lord. (See Psalm 139) Psalm 118: 24 says “This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Every day we can start the day by rejoicing that the Lord has made another day and we have been given another day of life. When I feel down I like to put on some praise music and turn the volume up. Also finding some quiet time to read my Bible or a devotional when the kids are busy doing other things can lift my spirits.
We can rejoice when we hear about others coming to faith. I used to get very discouraged when other team members were able to spend more time out building relationships while I was at home taking care of kids and schooling them. For years, when people asked me how they could pray for me I asked that I would be able to prioritize the way God wanted me too. I always felt that I should be doing more. Over the years I have learned that being at home with my children was an important role for me at this time in my life. Now that our youngest is almost 5 and we no longer have babies or toddlers I am looking forward to going out more with my husband to villages and to see the work and have opportunities to share with ladies. The concept of team is so important in keeping our joy. I can rejoice because others on our team have been able to start churches. I can also rejoice when our local co-workers and friends share about people giving their hearts to Jesus. It is easy to get discouraged when we don’t see the fruit of our labor, or when we hear about how many are coming to faith in other parts of the world. But this is just one way that Satan works against us. When we hear of things happening in other countries or in other cities in our countries, or even amongst other teams in our city, our response should be to be joyful. It is all the Lord’s work. We may not see the results of our work here on earth, but our reward is in heaven. When we get those “really cool stories” in the e-mail we should rejoice with our friends that they are seeing some fruit.
Children are a joy and a gift from the Lord. Seeing them grow and learn brings us joy. We need to enjoy the time that we get to spend with them. Wise children also bring joy. It is important for us to teach our children how to be wise. Teaching our children is important and we should not feel like we are failing if we spend a lot of time investing in our children.
Another thought about children - it is hard for us when we see that our children are not happy. Where we live there are very few English speaking kids. We have seen that many kids who come here when they are young are able to make local friends. But these friendships are usually harder to maintain during the teenage years. For one thing, the level of language needed to communicate is higher, but more than that, our kids just don’t have the same interests. Our kids have more knowledge because of their opportunity to travel and because of the things that they learn in school, and the local kids don’t have the same base of knowledge. We have seen many families (especially from other organizations) leave the field when their kids hit the teenage years because they see the need for their teens to be with other teens. We have learned (or maybe we are still trying to learn) not to be judgmental when we see the decisions that others make concerning their teens. Each family is different and there is not a magical formula that will work for all families. What we did is to send our teenagers to boarding school. Although it is difficult for us not seeing our children every day, we rejoice that they are getting the education and social skills that are necessary for them. So, I feel joyful when I know that my kids are joyful.
And, also on the subject of family, a good relationship with our spouse can, and should, bring us joy. We need to make sure that we keep this relationship healthy and take time for each other. We can encourage each other during the days when we don’t feel so joyful. I rejoice that I have a good relationship with my husband. We have fun together and enjoy being together.
Being with other believers gives us joy. We make sure to schedule time just to have fun with other international (i.e. not local) believers. We get together every two weeks on a Friday night to have dinner and play games with another American family that are our good friends. Additionally, we meet for worship with other foreigners and for prayer with our team. We like to have people over for dinner and make a point to have the families of the other English-speaking kids over often. I don’t think this takes away from our relationships with the nationals; it gives us the balance that we need and helps us to maintain our joy so that we have more energy for our national friends. Just like with our teenagers, our national friends don’t usually enjoy the same things that we do, for example, they don’t play games. When we are with other foreigners that understand us better we can receive those joyful looks and feel the love and encouragement that bring us joy.
Being with national believers also gives us joy. We love those opportunities when we can visit a local church, do Bible studies, have local believers over for dinner or visit in their homes. I can’t say it better than Paul does to the Thessalonians. “For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? Indeed, you are our glory and joy…How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?”

Other thoughts
“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” Gal 5:22,23 Also, in I Thess 1:6, Paul says to the Thessalonians, “You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.” We can receive joy from the Holy Spirit. Just as we can pray for more patience or love, we can also pray for more joy.
James tells us to “consider it pure joy …whenever you face trials”. (James 1:2) Not just joy, but pure joy! It certainly is not easy to feel joyful when we are faced with trials. But why should we consider it joy? In the following verses we get the answer – we will be mature and complete. In times when it is hard to feel joyful because there are too many trials, maybe we need to focus on the future and rejoice that we are being made into a better person through it all – mature and complete.

Thanks Arwen.