Missions Blog for Churches

A blog serving PCA missions leaders in the local church

December 16, 2011
by Seth W.
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Christmas Ideas

Although I probably should have posted this much earlier, it’s still not too late to give an especially-meaningful gift this year. In fact, if you’re like me, you will appreciate that you can give now and check it off your list (and you can also give last minute – it’s an electronic gift).

Several missions agencies have created Christmas catalogs. Instead of giving your uncle a new tie, give him 2 chickens. Okay, not really to him. But you can give someone who really needs them the two chickens in your uncle’s honor. And really, what’s your uncle going to do with another tie?

So here are some examples. One day, I hope MTW will come up with something like this.

I think I’ve finally found the perfect gift for my dad: two chickens and a goat!

December 15, 2011
by Seth W.
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Call for Missionaries

Last Spring, I had the privilege of attending the US Follow-up Conference to the 2010 Lausanne Conference (South Africa). One of the plenary speakers was Hwa Yung, the bishop of the Methodist church in Malaysia. He gave a talk very similar to the article written up in a recent Christianity Today. Although you may not agree with every word, I think you’ll find the overall message challenging and encouraging. Click here to read it.

December 6, 2011
by Seth W.
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New MTW Website

MTW has launched its new website. www.mtw.org

NOTE: Because of the structure of this new site, all my links back to mtw.org have broken. I’ve updated some, but it’ll take much longer to get everything updated. If a link is broken, go to www.mtw.org and use the search feature (it works quite well on the new site!).

 

 

 

 

November 30, 2011
by Seth W.
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Don’t Give to Faith Promise!

by, Keith Bucklen

In these difficult economic times, the last thing you need is another harangue about giving… especially at this season of the year when there are so many added expenses, and everyone seems to have his hand out for a contribution. So, don’t give to Faith Promise.

Now, the tithe is an obligation. God doesn’t need the money, of course, but he requires our obedience to constantly re-center our perspective – that he is the provider of all we have, and it all belongs to him anyway; and that he has given us both the noble responsibility and the amazing privilege of being co-laborers with him in the work of the Kingdom.

Give the tithe… but don’t give the Faith Promise. Faith Promise isn’t a call to, white-knuckled, writing out one more check for the church coffers. Rather, Faith Promise is an opportunity – really. That claim is not word-smithing or gimmickry to manipulate a little more money from your pocket. Faith Promise is a genuine invitation… an offer for you to:

  • Trust the Lord to provide income you were not expecting so that you can take part. This is not you giving, but God giving – both the means (the money) and the end (the fruit of that investment).
  • Grow spiritually as you see your faith realized. Just as with answered prayer, God’s financial provision for Faith Promise strengthens us in our relationship with him.
  • Become more obedient to the Great Commission. After all, if you and I are not going in missionary service, we must be about praying and sending.
  • Partner with our missionaries in their ministry. Just as King David decreed that those who were stewards of the army’s material possessions and “tarried by the stuff” (in the King James vernacular) would share equally in the booty, so we who are faithful at home will receive the same reward as those soldiers on the “front lines” that, together, we may cast those “crowns” at the feet of our King in his glory.

Paul wrote of the opportunity in Phil. 4:17: “Not that I am looking for a gift, but I am looking for what may be credited to your account.”

From my perspective, it seems that few are availing themselves of the Faith Promise. But all of us have the same access – trusting the Lord to provide so that we may participate. In a very real sense, the amount of your pledge is inconsequential. If you can trust him for $10 over the next year, then do that. The return blessing is not measured in dollars but in faithfulness. And if God does not provide, you are under no pressure.

So, don’t give to Faith Promise. Allow God to give to Faith Promise through you.

October 24, 2011
by Seth W.
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Minimizing the Bible? – A pastoral pondering about C5 (Insider Movement)

Here is another article that deals with the Insider Movement (C5) written in a more pastoral tone that I think many may find helpful as they wrestle with this (yes, it’s 6 years old, but still very appropriate!). In it, Piper asks about a possible connection between “radical contextualization” in missions and the seeker-sensitive churches that are often comprised of sermons which are “advice-talks with a religious twist.” The connection is the authority and power of God’s Word.

Just this weekend, I had two engaging conversations about this contextualization with members of my church. One was with a couple who served faithfully for a few decades in the Middle East among muslims. Another was with a national leader from Latin America. In both conversations I found that the common theme is we haven’t done contextualization well. And, in typical American fashion, we are now over-reacting with what Piper calls “radical contextualization.” So this conversation is very important. It isn’t a simple, one-time-kind of conversation. This is something that should be ongoing for us as we wrestle with how to clearly communicate the Gospel in a way that isn’t devoid of the power and authority of God’s Word.

Click here to read the article.

October 24, 2011
by Seth W.
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Cross-Cultural Servanthood: Serving the World in Christlike Humility – Book Review

Here is a book review by MTW’s Peter Beck on Cross-Cultural Servanthood: Serving the World in Christlike Humility, by Duane Elmer. Beck calls this a “vital resource” for missionaries and other cross-cultural leaders. Click here to order online.

For their first anniversary, Duane Elmer, author of Cross Cultural Servanthood, purchased a set of new snow tires for his wife. At the time, Duane and Muriel were living in the Upper Midwest and she needed the new tires to drive safely during the winter. Duane sacrificed a great deal to purchase the tires. He cared deeply for his wife and she needed the tires. However, his choice of anniversary present did not communicate his love to her in the way he’d intended.

As missionaries, we seek to communicate Christ’s love in a meaningful way to other cultures. We leave our home culture, language, family, and church to share the life-saving message of the gospel. We seek to communicate out of love and concern for others. Yet, sometimes our attempts to demonstrate Christ’s love fall as flat as new snow tires for an anniversary gift.

As part of his research for the book, Elmer asked leaders in other cultures how North American missionaries could become more effective in their ministry. Several leaders responded by saying, “Missionaries could more effectively minister the gospel of Christ if they did not think they were so superior to us” (p. 15). [Click here to continue reading this article...]

October 21, 2011
by Seth W.
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InVision: The Danger of “Fruitfulness” Without Purity

Here’s an article by Michael Oh from the most recent InVision newsletter. This is something every leader in the church should read. I’m even thinking of where I can put this to read it regularly. I need to hear this message again and again.

If you don’t subscribe to InVision, I highly recommend that you take time to do so. It is published 6 times a year, electronically, and is aimed at missions leaders both on the field and in the local church. Subscribe here.

The Danger of “Fruitfulness” Without Purity
Michael Oh

As I sift through a mountain of emails, I’ve learned to quickly dismiss forwarded “junk mail,” even if it’s from people I consider friends. At the same time, I learn to recognize which email “clicks” might actually reap spiritual blessing. When I get an email from a particular dear friend who works with the Navigators, I pay attention. A few years ago he forwarded an email of a quote passed along by one of his friends. The blessing and challenge of that email made such an impact on me that I’ve saved it to this day. The email read:

Years ago, I asked Jim Downing, one of the patriarchs of the Navigator work, “Why is it that so few men finish well?” His response was profound. He said, “They learn the possibility of being fruitful without being pure … they begin to believe that purity doesn’t matter. Eventually, they become like trees rotting inside that are eventually toppled by a storm.” [Click here to continue reading this article...]

October 19, 2011
by Seth W.
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Global Training and Development – GTD

GTD (Global Training and Development) is MTW’s training arm. They have a new video that will help you get to know them better. An extended version of the video can be viewed here. Learn more about GTD by clicking here. GTD’s training extends beyond MTW and is available to you and your church as well.

October 19, 2011
by Seth W.
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Did You Know?

Recently, Brett Carl (Missions Pastor at Westminster Reformed PCA in Suffolk, VA) participated in a our annual Missions Pastors Forum. He took some of the statistics he heard from Dr. Kooistra back to his media guy and came up with this. I think this would be a great tool to use on a Sunday morning before or during a missions conference.

Did You Know? from WRPC on Vimeo.