February in East Kilbride
First of all, my apologies for not posting yet. Randal invited me and I accepted, then it became very busy (what’s new?!!). Anyway, at his prompting I thought I’d do a quick summary of February.
Winter continues in Scotland – like many areas we have had a real winter this year (as I type there is still snow on the ground). The month began in the middle of a winter Sunday evening series on Creation vs Evolution. I presented four lessons and we concluded with a film emphasising God’s creative activity in the Universe. Our normal Sunday evening attendance in East Kilbride is in the 20s with rarely a visitor. We averaged for these five Sundays 59 with an average of 6 visitors. I’d always been told that winter is not the time to do an outreach event, that no one would come. I think that bit of “wisdom” can now be shelved! I am hoping that our elders will agree to doing something similar each winter. To be honest, I was looking to simply get everyone a bit more excited during our dreary winter – they were and it turned out well for the Lord’s work here.
I also spoke for a weekend series in mid-February in a joint effort between the Hyvots Bank (Edinburgh) and Kirkcaldy congregations. The theme I was given was “If there is a God, where are we without Him?” I used Friday night to discuss God’s existence, Saturday to look at the need to do something in response to Him, and Sunday I used three lessons to look further at God. Attendances were higher than normal and I felt it was a good series. By the way, I believe the Kirkcaldy congregation is arguably the oldest congregation in continuous existence. They appointed their first elders in 1798 and were in existence for quite a few years before that. I’ll stop.
Brazilian Zeal Mission Report, Jan/Feb ’10
Check out this page where you’ll find a pdf file for our first (bi)monthly report of this year, of Volume 26!
I’m suggesting to the GPMG members that they provide on the site here a one-paragraph summary, at least, of their activities of the previous month. Ought to be interesting! Here’s my paragraph:
January is the main vacation month in Brazil. So there are three Christian camp sessions, each a week long, by age. Leila served as a monitor for her first time, during the second week for ages 11-13. Then she stayed through for the third week as a camper. Then, only a couple of weeks later, she returned for the three-day session during the Carnaval holiday in February.
There’s a saying in Brazil that the country only starts to work after Carnaval. A bit of truth to that, unfortunately. So things start really gearing up in late February or March. Even the effects of it are felt in the church. Many travel, attendance is down, some events are canceled for lack of warm bodies. Now maybe we can get things moving!
Missions in the local congregation
Kevin Cauley writes on Preacher’s Files:
When we think about the word “missions” what naturally comes to our mind are specific works (primarily in other countries) in which the church participates by either contributing funds or sending individuals to be involved. The Latin root behind the English word “mission” simply meant “to send.” In the secular sense, the word has the idea of a specific task charged to an individual or group. In the religious sense the word entails a work of the church intended to propagate spiritual growth either spiritually or numerically. As I mentioned, we usually think of missions as being outside of the local congregation in some foreign country, or at least, away from our doorstep. However, there is a great mission to be done at home as well and we need to not only be mission minded locally as well as remotely.
His entire article is here.
Culture shock and adaption to a new country
A few days ago, just before their arrival in Asuncion, Paraguay, Troy Spradlin began chronicling his and his wife Andrea’s reactions on The Fellowship Room in a series he calls “Culture Shock Chronicles.” I invited him to register daily in a single paragraph some of their reactions and adaptations.
It makes for enlightening reading and serves as a growing resource for churches who want to understand better the process of cultural adaption.
In many things I’ve been able already to relate to Tony’s posts as they send me back in time to those days when we passed through similar phases.
The gift of another culture
Shane Bennett publishes “Pratical Mobilization” monthly as a part, from what I can tell, of the Missions Catalyst ezine. It’s an evangelical all-points-bulletin of their efforts. I liked this segment, as far as it goes, from today’s issue entitled, “Give the Gift of Another Culture.”
Here’s the kicker: We are convinced that the time we spent in Holland and England was an amazing gift for our kids. They brought back much more than wooden shoes and a slight Yorkshire accent. They acquired a second language (to varying degrees). They learned that different people see life differently. They discovered that Pakistani kids can be your friends. They found that most of the Nigerians we hung out with were totally cool. And they had seeds of an idea planted in their minds that though they carry American passports, they could learn to feel at home in many parts of the world.
Let me be clear here: Holland and England are relatively easy places for Americans to live. We didn’t stay long. And, although most of our kids required some medical care while we lived there, none of them even approached “scary” sick.
There are few things in the world I would trade for that time. I think they’d say the same.
Above and beyond all this, the gift of another culture equips our children to carry on God’s global mission so that the gospel might penetrate further into the dark world of humanity. They have grown up bridging two cultures and have a notion that things cultural are but local expressions of basic needs, some in more decent and acceptable forms than others, that all humans have.
A language is the Babel-induced means of communication necessary to the social creature that is man. Foods, which we find palatable or not, nourish the body. Worldviews are fallible attempts at putting all the pieces together from broken frames of reference.
Some of those expressions won’t be acceptable for the Christian: some language should never cross a Christian’s lips, some types of dress won’t do, some behaviors result from sinful thoughts and motivations. But any culture contains the possibility of communicating the gospel.
A child who has been reared in two or more cultures has a better sense of the equality of all and the superiority of none as a means of communicating the Good News. They will therefore be able more easily to step from one culture to another to continue the mission.
That’s the real gift I think we give our children.
10 guiding principles
For a men’s meeting of the Taubate church, I prepared these principles that have guided our efforts in that city, as elsewhere, since several new people have moved in recently. Many of these principles have been illustrated by texts from 2 Corinthians. Below is a translation, with a few adaptations, of the 10.
#1. SIMPLICITY. Remember the phrase, “Why complicate, if you can simplify”? We started meeting in Taubate in a house. We work with tools that everyone can use. We have a single, simple mission: to share the word of God about Jesus, in order that people may be saved.
#2. FLEXIBILITY. Simplicity offers us flexibility in the work. Paul changed his plans to visit the Corinthians because it was not the right moment. (Read 2 Cor 1:12-24.) We can change dates, plans, locations, everything about the way we conduct the work (as long as we obey the Lord’s commandments), for greater effectiveness. Read more…
Book: The Spirituality of Fund-raising
This 40-page booklet by Henri J. M. Nouwen was once offered for free, back when I ordered it, but not now. I suppose they thought it more spiritual to charge an absurd $13.50 for it. I benefited from it, but probably wouldn’t pay that price for that few pages, especially considering that there’s only about 27 pages of actual text. OK, so it is a slick, full-color print job on every page.
If you don’t have a good handle on what I’d call the theology of fund-raising, it might be a good investment as you begin or seek to sustain your missionary task. I’ve heard a few brethren raising funds who desperately need to read it, but they probably think they have a handle on how to do it.
The booklet is the transcript of a speech Nouwen gave to a foundation. He has good words. If it provides you with a context for fund-raising, that might just justify the price since it could leverage your efforts.
Here’s a short quote from the booklet. Read more…
How to fail at planting churches
I don’t anything about the person nor the content of the site (that was a disclaimer, in case you didn’t recognize), but this article was interesting: “10 commandments to fail as a churchplanter.” Among others, there’s this:
Don’t listen too much to local Christians. You know best how the church should look like, don’t you? Besides that, it’s so difficult to find out what they really think, that it’s hardly worth the trouble. When you are very clear about your own opinions, they will follow you without questioning. Some, maybe most, will disappear, but they probably just would have been troublemakers anyway.
Some of his best stuff is in the concluding paragraph. Check it out.
Two more in; accidents happen
From Belgium, Roy Davison has confirmed his participation in the group, as have Robert and Michal Swain of Gospel Opportunities based in Vilonia AR. We’re glad to have them join Barbara Oliver, Mike Brooks and me as we get underway.
Robert and another brother left today for Costa Rica. Yesterday Michal fell on ice at church and broke her fibula near her ankle. So our good sister Barbara took the two to the airport today. On her way back her car slid into a ditch, though Michal says she is fine. I’ve received an email from Barbara, and she seems to be OK. Anyway, pray for all these!
Principles to work by
This from today’s issue of Don Petty’s weekly email to his 70 gents, with his blanket permission:
This is my very brief summary of Philip Slate’s paper.
Contact Brother Slate for the details of his entire paper. Don Petty
Myanmar Interest group
by Philip Slate
1. DO ALL YOU CAN TO INTERACT WITH THE LOCAL CULTURE ON ITS OWN TERMS, just as Paul did when he approached first Jews in the synagogue and then Gentiles. Check out the respective sermons to Jews and Gentiles recorded in Acts and notice the differences.
2. THINK CHURCH. The development of works that will last, depends heavily upon the welding of converts into meaningful local assemblies.
3. BE CAREFUL ABOUT IMPORTING “FOREIGN” WAYS AND MEANS. The ways of doing God’s work and “doing church” in our experience “back home” may not be appropriate in another culture.
4. STRIVE TO BE UNITED, STRENGTHENING AND PRAYING FOR EACH OTHER. We are engaged in Christ’s cause, not ours.
5. SHARE VALUABLE LITERATURE WITH EACH OTHER. Whenever you come across a valuable article on work anywhere in Asia, share it with others who work there. You might bless someone with very valuable insight.
Brotherly, C. Philip Slate
cpsmissions@gmail.com
(615) 584-2350
