Mike’s Sea2sea Blog

I thought this was a "fall" retreat?

Zinzendorf, Where are you now?

Just a couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of spending a weekend with a group of young adults from Rexdale Alliance church. About four weeks before that, I got to spend an evening with the young adults from Bayview Glen church. Coming up in January and February, I will be with Jaffray Alliance’s young crowd, and then the same group at First Alliance.

What a privilege to be with these adults who are coming to grips with what God is calling them to be. Bruce Cockburn writes a revolutionary song: “Lord, I’m scanning these crowds for some sign of your face.” I thought of that recently, but I think Bruce and I are looking for different things.

Cockburn’s looking for the Lord to raise up political activists, like Louis Riel, to shake up the status quo. There is no doubt that our world’s status quo is a disaster worthy of serious grief and prayer – but I’m not looking for a Riel.

I’m looking for Zinzendorf.

Well, not really. It’s not that we need a 18^th century German nobleman, or even the pietist church and missions movement he helped launch…it’s that we need people to step out in fresh loyalty to the call of Jesus.

What was special about Zinzendorf? From his youth, his heart was captured by the person of Jesus, and his personal devotion to Jesus was a like a fountain that made life flow for many others, eventually touching nations all over Europe and around the world. As we talked about this at the Rexdale retreat, what stood out for me was that though he was one of the wealthy and important people of Europe, the charm of that was lost in his youth – and instead he moved easily between rich and poor, and between various Christian groups (in multiple countries) that would normally be at odds…starting little small groups of Christ followers wherever he went. His prestige and power was just something to steward well for His Lord. (His contagious motto: Be true to Christ, Kind to All People and the Gospel for the Nations).

One example: The coronation celebrations for King Christian the 6^th of Denmark (1731). (Can you imagine the well-dressed, rich and mighty of the continent mingle with one another in Copenhagen, roaming in palace halls?) But Zinzendorf …he’s finds a new friend. A slave from the West Indies: Anthony Ulrich, a new Christian.  Soon they find they are kindred in Christ and Anthony convinced the count his family and other slaves need someone to bring them the gospel. Zinzendorf raced back to the community of religious refugees on his property that recently experienced a fresh work of the Holy Spirit – and challenged them with this need. One of the young men from that group committed his life that night, offering to become a slave himself if it will aid in bringing the gospel to the slaves of the island of St. Thomas. The Moravian missions movement is born…

It convicts me, because I, after all my learning and loving of Jesus, still struggle to look good, to perform well, and to advance myself among whatever crowd I am involved in. Who am I trying to impress? Why? I want to be free from that – and to lead this next generation to be free from that as well. I trust that loyalty to Christ will break the unhealthy (idolatrous) loyalties we keep  – and that He is sufficient to lead us and equip us to address the real needs of our world with the gospel unhindered by the lines of race, economic status or culture.

Scholars and world changers

So, spending time in our churches, and with these young people, what I look for, long for, work for, is a response to God’s summons to a total surrender to His purpose and plan. As we worked our way through the text of the Rich Young Ruler, I sensed God calling me afresh, and I know he is at work in the young people Rexdale, and in many other places, too. “Won’t you revive us again, so your people can rejoice in you?” (Psalm 85). The hunger is definitely present.

Another German, writing to strengthen faithful Christians and new leaders in that country during World War Two, put it well:

“And if we answer the call to discipleship, where will it lead us?”

Listening to Jian Gomeshi on CBC radio interview people about the flood relief (or lack of) in Pakistan, it’s interesting to hear the phrase “compassion fatigue” come up so often.

But I know all to well what it means.  It means that I can be moved with compassion easily the first time, then less so the second, and nearly none the third. Quickly I can go from being a concerned citizen of the world, to feeling like “I’m not really sure this is making a difference” (For example, gifts to major disastors)…. But I wonder if I am just responding to media pictures of disasters, and not to the Holy Spirit’s work in me.  It seems pretty clear that guilt doesn’t last very long. Even altruism (I’m a good person who helps others) doesn’t have much a hold on me. But what does keep a grip on me is the way Jesus loves. The problem is, I’m so used to thinking about compassion through guilt, or through achieving some credit or self worth by helping, that I think I still am still missing the path of true Christian charity.

I will never run out of what God has asked me to give.  Right?

From my understanding, there’s a surrender that occurs (ever heard the story about St. Francis and the leper?), that frees me to embrace the need of the moment.  The way Christ had compassion was founded on the dignity and worth of the sufferer in the eyes of the Father. And of course, it’s first known to us in the way we have been loved by Him.

In some lesser ways, I think I have experienced this “surrender” to love, but I’m rusty. I need practice!

Here’s a reflection posted today from musician Steve Bell – but he gets to the good stuff when he sings the song included in that blog. That’s some basic theology – to love those whom God loves. (And the Foodgrains bank idea is something our Alliance missions family is involved with as well.)

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Still reading? Here’s a strange thing that happened to me about 6 or 7 years ago.

I was doing dishes, listening to CBC news at 6, which I did nearly every day. The story was about thousands fleeing battle scenes in Iraq.  I have always been deeply moved by the mass movements of people due to war (Macedonia/Kosovo, for example in the 90’s). Because of so many TV images in my head, it was easy to imagine the many kinds of people trying to make use of the hot, sandy roads.

Well, it was like I went into a period of time where God was trying to tell me something, through a kind of strong visual picture. I stopped doing the dishes, and grabbed a pen and paper and wrote out what I was seeing:

I’m standing at a simple table beside a road, like what I was imagining in Iraq. The table is full of bread and I have a supply of water – coolers and bottles. I’m pretty much alone, but very concious of my task: to give out as much bread and water as people will receive. So I’m offering water and bread to weary people, refugees carrying their belongings. I’m offering it to American soldiers. I’m offering it to terrorists with guns. I’m offering it to women, and offering it to dictators. I’m offering it to the kids, and even splashing them as though it were time to play.

And I never run out. It seems right to just keep on giving it to absolutely anyone I can, because I won’t run out and I’ll never run out.

This  image totally captured my heart and mind for some time. There may be more to it than I picked up, but it seemed to me the bread and water are Christ and his gospel. But they are not only emblematic of “the good news about him”, but the picture was also about my material capacity to supply the needs of each person that was on that road.  As though all I needed to do was be faithful in giving what I had, and God would see to it that I would not run out.

It burned it me a conviction that’s grown, and is always being tested, that His gospel is sufficient for the needs of our world.

When I hear or read stories about great missionaries of the past, the level of faith I see challenges me. People simply believed God for impossible things.

Think of all the people that encouraged Henry Martyn to turn his back on a successful life of influence in England. Or the early Alliance churches that waited for months for news from Toronto son Robert Jaffray while he travelled Asia, establishing leadership centers in China and Indonesia (the latter thrived despite being established over the same years as the Great Depression in Canada and the U.S.!). I marvel at these heroes, but marvel even more perhaps at those that could send them, believing that God was at work.

It feels like something is lost in our churches today. No generation has it all together, so I’m not pining for different times.  But we can learn from a history of faith. It will look different in our times, of course — but I can’t wait to see what faith expressed in our times will look like. Here’s three elements that concern me:

Faith in God working through ministry that’s beyond my reach:

I love the common story of a person who has gone on a Short Term Missions trip, walked around with one of our workers overseas; removed from “home” culture, they see a new people, pray with an emerging church, hear the heart of a missionary, perhaps serve alongside them in some small way. I believe that in this “small” world, we can have more and more people bringing gifts, news, love and encouragement to our IW’s, experiencing an important education in return.

BUT; a word of caution. Short Term Missions is not a replacement for faith. It can help us grow, it can do so much, but if a person “needs” to have an STM experience in order to be missions minded, something’s wrong. “We want to do a missions trip” is the default answer of so many churches who want to drum up support for missions. It may be a good idea – but missions supporters are not consumers. It is a question of the heart, not of the method — a heart steeped in a biblical worldview regarding the purpose and identity of the church, a heart confident of the need for the gospel, and it’s power to save every person. The other motives that creep in are – let’s face it – common to the middle class traveller from North America. I want to do good somewhere, I want to see new things, have new adventures. That is a foundation of sand. You just can’t build eternal things on that.

God uses us still, despite our cultural baggage, but it’s healthy for us to go deeper, seek His voice, and let the Word examine our motives. Then go after that! Or better, send someone to learn for you, and welcome the news they bring back as precious and revolutionary.

Can you believe God is working, even though you yourself are not there right now?

Faith in God working through people beyond my reach.

I love the technology that makes it possible for me to have Skype call with a friend from Poland, or Thailand; read the tweets of a colleague in Mexico City; emails that feature pictures of a building project in Central Asia — all before lunchtime! Let’s make the most of it!

At the same time, it is not fair to an international worker to say “Out of sight, out of mind.” Even as they embrace new technologies (I love to see churches helping IW’s do this), surely faith in someone’s God-anointed ministry would require us to purposefully remember them even without fresh news! In the Kingdom we should be able to enjoy a close relationship without 24-7 tweet and status updates!

This is especially important now, when so many of our friends are serving in countries where too much information may bring suffering and persecution for them, or for those they are close to. They need our faithful prayers more than ever, yet they cannot “compete” with the modern world for messaging. But maybe we need to go against the grain for them, using “old school” methods: talking friend-to-friend, passing the news around the church by word of mouth (without glossy photos or videos!).

The workers need prayers for miracles, let’s not leave them high and dry!

Faith in God working on a schedule beyond my reach:

So often (not always, not predictably) the first workers who arrive among a given people group will experience hardship and little fruitfulness. Witness the first American workers to arrive on the shores of Congo – today believers are everywhere, but there was years of difficulty at the beginning. Some people died, and some came home discouraged.  Today the C&MA is sending people into regions where they face monolithic, seemingly impenetrable systems of culture and life built on other religions,  or a “post-Christian” mentality that rejects the gospel out of hand because of  some false, previously taught or encountered version of Christianity, or even authoritarian persecution of anyone confessing the name of Jesus.

Do we have the faith needed to respond to this, according to God’s schedule?

I’m not sure if anything has been lost. But it does seem like we have yet to see the rewards for flexing the muscles God have gifted us with. What will real faith look like as we are stretched in the coming 50 years of missions?

Answer: The local church.

Last week I had a series of meetings with my fellow missions/local church connection people from across Canada. We met each day (and had a great lunch) at Levis Alliance church in Quebec City (actually it’s Levis, directly across the St. Lawrence). Part way through, we had the privilege of hearing the testimony of the pastor – Serge Roy.

I enjoyed hearing this brother’s story. He came to Christ much later in life, and as God worked, he began to study and learn more and more. The local church, and pastor Jess Jesperson, were supportive, and soon Serge was studying at IBVIE. IBVIE is school for leadership training that serves the Quebec region. It’s based in Montreal, but has held night courses for people of churches in the Outouais (Gatineau), and Quebec City.

His focus as pastor now at Levis is not only the “every day” ministry of the Levis church, but making disciples of all peoples, whether or not it benefits their community in some way. Recently, they have become involved in ministry with Mexican migrant workers on a local farm — people who will obviously move back to their region. “Our job is not to build our church, but to build the kingdom!” said Serge.

The day before, I had a great phone call with J., a muslim background believer who began his journey with Christ about 4 years ago in Ottawa and attended periodically the church I served in. He had moved back to Montreal to live with his family, and I was concerned for this young, intelligent student who was coming to grips with what to do with his life. I had always seen J. as a future leader, who might have a powerful testimony among Arabic “2nd” generation Canadians.

Praise God! When we talked, I found out he was continuing on his faith journey, reading his Bible, listening to TV preaching (well, why not?) and sharing about Jesus with others. It was obvious he was doing well — but just as obvious that he needed what Serge had — a chance to go deeper in understanding God’s word, and a community to nurture God’s call on his life (wherever that may lead).

So, I’m going to try and link J with IBVIE, and hopefully he’ll meet up not only with bright, faithful people who are dedicated to preparing leaders –but also he’ll have the chance at experiencing the treasure of having a local church “take him in”, love him and ultimately launch him into a lifetime of church-shaping ministry in Quebec (or wherever God leads him).

Local Church: Refining Furnace or Big Comfy Couch

I remember that people that came for discipleship in my church, were often like this. I admit, it was a struggle at times to seize the opportunity and give real energy to someone “ready” for that extra time and effort. Yet I myself am the fruit of some very direct leadership of others in my life.

I think we like the idea that “God calls someone”. Can you see Moses taking his shoes off before approaching the burning bush? Disciples leaving their nets, and following a Rabbi of exceptional authority?  Paul, blinded by light on a road near Damascus? Call – well, call seems pretty clear!

But do we like the day in, day out privilege of preparing someone? For Moses, it was a lifetime of preparation. The disciples had to take 3 years of “Jesus University”.  Paul spent years studying both pre and post conversion, and was eventually brought under the wing of Barnabas in a wild church plant in Antioch.  All of these people, at one time or another, would have easily been overlooked as leaders.

All I’m saying is that great leaders for our movement of churches won’t magically appear for us, pre-prepared, theologically trained, full of our shared vision of Christ in us, the hope of glory. I think God brings leaders to us all the time, but it’s our privilege to — by His grace — deliberately fan into flame the gifts they have, and teach all that we know. Very quickly (it will seem later) how we trained their thought and imagination will one day, full of God’s power, shape our own and re-shape the church.

I love the way the local church in Quebec partners with IBVIE. What about the rest of Canada? Can we, do we, do this with Ambrose?

Are we still hoping somebody will suddenly appear to lead us?

Looking back at General Assembly, I have to admit one of the highlights was the brief sharing times of things God was doing locally and internationally. One of them really shook me and some friends I was sitting with.

It was the testimony from a young evangelist from a Muslim background and was introduced to Assembly on the final night by M, one of our ECD international workers. Together they are reaching people in places where politicians, diplomats and CNN would convince you: “that’s impossible”.

He shared his stirring life story of God’s saving power,  and he concluded in a loud voice, almost crying in desperation: “But I have just one more thing to tell you church in Canada; why 20 years? Why did I have to wait 20 years for someone to come and tell me and my family about Jesus? Now there’s a whole generation of people with hate in their hearts. Why?”

Boom. It just hung in the air for awhile. It was near the beginning of our final commissioning rally, but we could have ended it right there. His cry touched something vital that we all share as C&MA people – despite our many-layered diversity.

One of our younger leaders felt this too (Trina Pinzon, youth leader at an Ottawa church) and she wrote me about how General Assembly “… fuelled my passion to be committed to and for the gospel as Paul did. I want to know more and experience the Jesus that Paul knew in a deep true way that he was able to say as in Philippians 1:21 “for me, to live is Christ and to do is gain…. The image that remains in my mind until today is the [testimony mentioned already] guy who grew up in the refugee camp and at the age of 20 encountered Jesus and has then been living for Christ…..he is living Philippians 1:21”

How quickly we can be moved by a “clear and compelling” call. That gives me hope. I personally believe that our C&MA churches are still moved by a God-inspired, simple reminder that the gospel is the  remedy for the deepest wounds of the world in which we live, and the church is God’s chosen instrument to apply that remedy. When we are confident, full of faith about that, bold to speak  and act in our Globe and Mail world, well….what then?!

ECD Faces - Ready for the Future?

And my hope and prayer is that the next wave of leaders joining our ranks in the ECD — like Trina — have that deep certainty that the gospel “is the power of God at work” that was so evident in cry of the young Silk Road evangelist. There people like him wondering:

“Why are you waiting so long?“

In Aberdeen, South Dakota in the early 1950’s, the pastors decided together to invite an evangelist from Chicago, a singing group called the Cheye Trio, a bass singer named Joe Blinko, and a well-known pianist for a series of meetings.

Not many people came.

But a woman went forward one the first nights, and the young Alliance pastor noticed nobody paid attention. So he went and spoke with her. She knew nothing about church, had bleached blonde hair, smoked, worked in a tavern and lived in a basement apartment. They ran out of time talking, so he invited her back the next night. And the next. The third night, she suddenly “awoke to the claims of the gospel”.  Some kind of dramatic change came over her. The pastor was afraid that she wouldn’t feel at home in his church. He suggested she attend the Salvation Army citadel. She would have none of it! She wanted to go where the pastor was.

When she came, she had such a glow of joy and peace, and the Aberdeen Alliance people embraced her. Her life underwent a transformation. She had two small boys, around 8 and 10. Both became Alliance pastors!

My grandpa (the young pastor) has told me this story many times. I recently Googled the last name of the woman who went forward  and sure enough there’s some Alliance pastors out there, and how many people have encountered Christ through their ministry?

What do I love about this story? A life changed – yes. But after my experience as a pastor, I see the miracle in the moment my grandpa’s deciding to whether to go over and speak to this woman (at some local Christian event that was not going very well). I see the miracle in her coming back to the meetings. And – oh, I love this one– I see the miracle of the people of this Aberdeen fellowship put their arms around Ms. Salfrank and love her, ready to see where the adventure of following Jesus would take her and them together.

This story is local Americana. This story is also completely universal, experienced in a hundred thousand different communities, thousands of languages. Drink mixing smokers and railway workers in Aberdeen; cocoa farmers in Cote d’Ivoire and rebel soldiers in Lebanon … ‘chosen seed of Israel’s race, ransomed from the fall’…

What a way to change the world.

(Sign me up)

Joel Moriba Onivogui - Directeur de Mission EPEG

Dashed were my idealistic hopes of blow-by-blow blogging during my recent March trip to Paris, Turkey and Guinea. But over the next weeks,  I hope to unpack and share the blessings I received throughout the 18 days of travel.

The Gift of Collegiality

When my grandfather first shared some of the benefits of teaching Bible College, he emphasized the depth of relationships between colleagues and students. “Michael”, he said (with his trademark look that meant ‘Are you listening? This is important!’ ),  ”I could go anywhere in the world, and there would be someone there to take me in.”

While in Guinea, International Worker Dan Ibsen often arranged meetings for us with local pastors and national leaders. I think it was my favorite part, because it offered an insight into the relationships between our workers and Guineans, as well as the hopes and dreams of the people God has raised up for Kingdom leadership in that country.

One such meeting involved Pastor Joel. After initial introductions, Joel was asked to share his ministry. He told us about how the EPEG (Alliance churches in Guinea) has begun over the past few years to send out their own ministry people to live and work among the unreached cultures present in Guinea. His task was helping make sure that their missionaries had the training they needed, and  also to visit and cast vision among churches  and pastors about God’s heart for the nations, so that they support these bold workers in doing what seemed impossible – to cross tribal boundaries and present Christ.

My ears perked up – hey, that’s what I do! Though I think he does much more of the direct overseeing of missions work than I do, we were able to compare notes  on rallying churches to the bigger picture of reaching those who have not yet heard; what it’s like to meet with pastors who have concerns about how to fit this into the priorities of church life; how our workers can become discouraged when the work shows little fruit.

In other words, we were facing the same stuff.  The Guinean church is asking it’s people to look beyond their own people, even though there is a world of need there too, and sacrifice their resources, and some of them even to go and live among another culture that may reject them. They are being challenged to stand firm, and hold forth the gospel in an ethnically diverse,  majority muslim country.

Despite opposition, God’s redemptive purposes keep moving forward…..

And here’s another thought for reflection: there’s a “you” in Guinea, too! In fact,  all over the world, there are believers “sowing in tears” (Psalm 126), hope against hope, that God would bring his harvest. We really are the same, much more so than we think.

Are we about to have our least “regionally” influenced Assembly ever?

General Assembly, a meeting of C&MA leaders in Canada, is normally held in one of our cities, alternating between eastern city (like Ottawa or Toronto) and western (like Calgary or Saskatoon). But this time, over 700 leaders will holding Assembly in Antalya, Turkey!

In one of the MBA newsletters, it said that some leaders coming to Assembly may need to switch airports in Istanbul, making the trip across the Bosporus, which separates Europe from Asia. What a great illustration of the reality of unity – someone has to cross a significant bridge to order to arrive at their destination.

I’m a prairie boy, but have served in Ontario since 1996. I was wondering if having Assembly “off-shore” may impact or ‘dislodge’ some of our allegiance (or prejudice!) towards a given part of Canada.

And then came these Olympics! Underneath the “crude bravado” marketing (we didn’t need it!), it’s hard to miss the mix of athletes from all over Canada supporting each other, the hopeful cheering from across the country for the athletes, the shared appreciation of each person’s story. Seemed like regionalization was “hold”, even though regional identity was still an important part.

What will prevail when we meet together?

A favourite quote about being missions-minded : “This character develops not when a church –or it’s representative — leaves it’s geographic location. Rather, it happens when a church takes leave of the cultural loyalties alien to the gospel.”

I’m looking forward to times of corporate worship. So many different cultures, regions, languages, represented….and before us the bridge, built by Christ’s love for men. May it be that ugly loyalties well-known, and still others yet to be discovered in our hearts, can be dropped like Sid Crosby’s gloves after winning the big game.

Surely this is the joy of Ps.133. Holy Spirit! Keep me from packing my cherished grievances and bringing them along to crucial times of worship and decision-making.

Plenary Session Urbana09

It’s been a long time coming, but I know that I need to provide a source for people interested in following ideas and messages that came from Urbana 09. Here are 4 themes that emerged as important for me:

Empowered

A trendy word in many different communities, but I’ll tell you what I mean in this context:  there were women and men of all kinds of different cultural backgrounds who discovered in Christ a whole new dignity and worth. This was beautifully illustrated by testimony after testimony: for example a Korean-American missionary who lives among the Japanese shared how he had to forgive them for past crimes and overcome his cultural prejudice…and now reaches out to them in genuine love.  Rwandan Antoine R., forgiving the Hutus now sitting on a reconciliation council… so extreme…but perhaps my favourite was a girl who discovered she could be a “proud Latina in Christ” on her missions trip. (Cheryl Bear from Manitoba gave another stirring example – this came out through several female testimonies).

What I loved was the boldness, confidence in the words of all these believers! It was not a boastfulness that came through, but a joy of their authority in Christ to live and serve as he leads them. Ultimately, it was obvious that this was not an “American” or “North American” evangelical Christianity that we were celebrating, it was the fragrance and life of Christ taking root in all peoples. It really did feel like revolution. All these people, strength enough to forgive horrible injustice, serve out of love for Christ, free to be who God made them to be……perhaps I am jealous for a better identity than the one marred by sin that is me by nature (and works easily enough in some settings -white, educated North American male).  What does it look like for my own love of others to be shaped only by the love Jesus had for me, for my confidence to stand up and be counted to be shaped by the dignity Jesus has given me as someone deputized by him to transform the world! (Favorite passage comes to mind “But you have made me as strong as wild ox. You have anointed me with the finest oil.” Or Jeremiah’s commissioning “Do not say ‘I am only a child…Look, I have put my words in your mouth. Today I appoint you to stand up against nations and kingdoms.”

Incarnational

Ramez Atallah’s understated messages on the model of Jesus in missions had great power, and is worth using for small group discussion and study. (Catch the parable he uses at the beginning of the intro message, as well as the final story at about the 14:50 mark). The idea of how we influence our world by “moving into the neighborhood”, intentionally loving the people we live among, was emphasized. But this never seemed to be diminish the importance of the proclamation of the gospel, or degenerate into a sheepish “lifestyle evangelism”, but instead was a call to suffer with those in the margins, become a blessing to those around us, and even care for the world in which we live. (A great skit about what keeps us in North America from incarnational living was called, “Fences“)

Missional

There was a great encouragement that I sensed throughout the week, partly hearing from one of our Alliance International Workers Gerald Hogenbirk. I asked him what he would say if he had a chance to all the students finding their seats. He said “Oh man, I’d say ‘Go for it! Don’t worry about what anyone says that might deter you from doing what God is putting on your heart…Don’t be afraid! Just do it. It will be the greatest thing.” (I’m paraphrasing here, of course). Messages that spoke to me on that level:  Creation Care, by an incredible woman who herself is living out a dream God gave her years ago as a graduate student, the brief challenge at  the very beginning of Urbana by Jim Tebbe.

Prayer

Well, the thing that seems the easiest, yet we all know is the hardest – prayer. I told it many times by now how God anointed one of our Toronto pastors, Sunder Krishnan, with a powerful message called “Pray Big, Pray Bold.” This was particularly a challenge to our mindset about prayer, moving us away from only asking for our daily blessings while ignoring the much more exciting and inviting purposes of a God who is redeeming the world. The key passage is a prayer of the early church in Acts Chapter 4 (verses 23-31). The following day, amidst 60 or so other seminars (every afternoon had many seminars to choose from) about 700 students filled to overflowing a room where Pastor Sunder gave a seminar on the same subject.  What was it about a message on praying according to scripture that captivated the hearts and minds of so many people? Let’s not discuss it for too long – take advantage of opportunities to pray for God-sized breakthroughs now with a friend!

An additional observation was that whenever I asked students what their favorite thing about the conference was, the most common answer by a long shot was “The manuscript Bible study in the morning”. I initially expected “the preaching” or “the music”….WHAT? The Bible study?  I couldn’t believe it. The part of the conference that meant getting up early, walking 20 min in the cold to sit at a round table with 10 or so peers to read a passage, take turns commenting on it and applying it…. And now, a month later I have heard of groups in many of the churches that sent students to Urbana where small group bible studies are starting – using the same “Manuscript Bible study” pattern established by the good people of Intervarsity.

To paraphrase I mentor I came into contact with while at the conference: “God is on the move…..”

Me and C.S.

So here in the middle of so many people, God grants me the joy of seeing Andy!

Andy was on our very first youth/young adult “exploration” Fusion team to Mexico City. It was a largely a journey of prayer, and of hearing the stories of our International Workers. Lisa Clarke (and Wendy Boon!) and Paul & Cindy Ens shared their hearts for the city. God used that trip in my life to teach me what it meant to share a burden for a people and a place.

I remember being taken by Pastor Arturro to a neignbourhood to be introduced to a family fairly new in Christ. They treated us to lunch and then asked for a testimony. It was Andy’s turn!

“Oh, I don’t have much of a testimony..” he says humbly. After more encouragement he starts out, “well, my grandparents were Christians, and my parents were Christians, and now I’m a Christian too.” Ha! I remember seeing the interest of these new Christians holding on to their faith under very difficult circumstances! Imagine a vibrant faith being passed on from one generation to the next! Andy went on to share about his grandmother’s hope that he would do a missions trip, and had actually saved money just for that purpose without him knowing. When he decided to come, she presented to him.

Seeing Andy at Urbana 09 was great, since he went off to university for the past four or five years and I always felt God had special plan for him. Here he is, sorting out what God is calling him to in the years ahead, putting everything on the table.

I also met Richard, a retired United Methodist pastor from Tulsa, who since his wife passed away has given his time to ministering to students at a university. Richard was a student like Andy at Urbana 67, and shared with me what an amazing time of Biblical study that was with great preaching by John Stott. Then I met 4 people from Montreal; African, Haitian, Tunisian! Go Montreal! It’s pretty cool that the main speaker Ramez has a long history of serving there.

So why was I weeping yesterday morning?

A lady who has been in war torn country very much in the news for the past 30 years, gave an incredible appeal for young people to consider long term missions. Bombs, different brutal governments were constantly part of her family’s experience. I realize that I can’t really do it justice – it was just beautiful testimony of God’s grace in her and her husband’s life. God was sufficient to help them be his light in as impossible a place as there ever was. She told a story of violent extremists coming to the village where they were, confronting local village leadership with being “backslidden” from the tenets of their faith because of their welcome to the foreigners. The local leader stepped forward boldly, confronted them right back saying, “You have insulted our guests. These people have served here for years, eating our food and taking care of our sick. We know why you are here, to change our minds. Get lost…” The band of extremists left, out numbered. This woman and her physician husband remained in perhaps the most dangerous country in the world, because they couldn’t imagine leaving. Like Richard who I met earlier, they committed their lives to God’s service at Urbana ‘67.

Ramez also was hot yesterday morning – preaching on the text where Jesus goes to the temple and clears it of the businesses that were going on in the Gentile courts. It was so good. As he gets near to the end of his messages, he starts to really pour out his heart. He spoke on the tie money has on us, and applied the passage to when our “means” to do God’s work overcomes the “message” we were originally charged with. He shared a story about a young couple at an Urbana in the early 80’s that decided to dedicate themselves to God’s purposes. They wrestled through the promptings of God, and ended up not going into missions. “End of story, right?” says Ramez. They ended up establishing a business, and made steps very early on to live a simple life no matter how successful it got. They pay themselves a very modest salary, and the rest of the profits go to missions. They now give about a million dollars a month to missions, and their lifestyle is unchanged. Ramez gives a few principles on giving that I need to put into a curriculum soon. Then last night Shane Claiborne talked about taking a hammer to our Ipods! (Much nervous laughter – if you know about this guy, that could be an altar call!).

Oscar Muiru’s message last night was also very profound, wise and continued to shatter my stereotyping of African worldviews. I highly recommend it.

Urbana site with all the videos, theatre presentations, sermons of the past 3 days: http://vimeo.com/urbana09/albums

Thank you for all who are praying. On the way in this morning on a shuttle bus, I talked with Joel Sjaarda of Rexdale. We started talking about how God speaks to us. Joel shared some personal and wise reflections, and said to me: “It’s a strange access we have to God”. Oh, man. Tell me about it. But it seems to me that God declaring, stirring, prompting powerfully at this conference. Continue to pray for our many young people to receive it!

Off to day 4!