The Missionary Memo

Divine Red Lights (and what to do when you're stuck at one)

2014-07-09T07:48:00.000-07:00

Even a small child knows that a red light means to stop. But what does the word stop mean? It seems to be such a simple word, but the word stop actually has two inferences that are quite different from each other. On one hand, the word stop means to quit. If a father said to his son, "I want you to stop telling lies," we would rightly assume that he means to quit lying...permanently. On the other hand, if a father saw his son about to run into the road, he may yell, "Stop!" That doesn't mean for the rest of his life he is forbidden to leave the yard or cross the street. His dad was not calling for a permanent stop, but a temporary stop. In other words...wait. When a traffic light turns red, it does not mean the drivers are to quit their journey. It doesn't mean they are to give up and turn around and go home. It doesn't mean they are never again to travel this road. It simply means to wait. It is a temporary stop, not a permanent one. Honestly, it would be just as appropriate to call a red light a wait light as a stop light.

There are many examples of divine red lights in the Bible. Take Abraham for instance. After receiving the promise from God that he would be the father of a great nation, he promptly got stuck at a red light. No son. Perhaps for the first few months after God made that promise to him, he kept thinking and expecting that his wife, Sarah, would conceive a child. But of course, she didn't bear Isaac until decades later.

But if you think Abraham's red light was long, what about Noah's? God set him on a life journey that included a 100-year red light! Of course, if the light had turned green after 10 years or even 50 years, Noah and his family would have drowned.

Have you ever been perfectly situated to go through a green light, only to have someone else make a lane change, or a pedestrian step into the crosswalk, and cause you to miss your green light? That happened to Joshua and Caleb. They were revved up and ready to go. The light was green and they were ready to roll. Then due to someone else's bad decision, they had to sit through 40 more years of a red light.

Then there is Joseph. Poor Joseph. His life was reminiscent of that big boulevard that goes through the middle of pretty much every town and has a stop light every hundred feet. I'm sure your town has one.

Go. Stop. Go. Stop.

A dream and a vision...green light.

Sold into slavery...red light.

Favor and promotion in Potiphar's house...green light.

Falsely accused and imprisoned...red light.

Divine appointments and opportunities in prison...green light.

Forgotten...red light.

Remembered...green light.

You get the idea.

I want to direct your attention to a divine red light in the New Testament, encountered by the early church in the days immediately following Christ's ascension. They had been commissioned to take the Gospel to the entire world. Notice the specific wording:
-Go ye therefore, and teach all nations (Mt 28:19)
-Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature (Mk 16:15)
-Ye shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost part of the earth. (Acts 1:8)
But before they could even get up a full head of steam...BAM! A divine red light! Acts 1:5 reads, "And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait..." When I read that verse in my Khmer Bible, it jumped out at me as a red light, because it used the Khmer word haam which means to forbid. Jesus commanded them to leave Jerusalem and spread the Gospel to the uttermost part of the earth, then turned right around and forbade them to leave Jerusalem! Doesn't seem to make sense, does it?

But Jesus had a very definite reason for this red light. The red light didn't mean to abandon the mission, and it certainly wasn't an order to permanently stay in Jerusalem. Rather, it was a wait light. Jesus had them waiting for the Holy Spirit to be sent from the Father. Jesus knew that without the Holy Spirit, their attempts at obeying the commission would be futile.

So let's talk about divine red lights. Divine red lights are every bit as much a part of our lives today as they were in the Bible days. It's not a matter of if, but when. Nobody likes red lights, but as a Christian, we need to remember that God is God and we are not. We need to remember that He knows what He is doing. We need to remember that His thoughts are not our thoughts, and His ways are not our ways. Sometimes he sets a red light in our path to protect us. Sometimes it is to give us patience or develop more faith in us. There are myriad reasons why God may bring us to a red light, either in a our ministry or personally. There are also myriad circumstances in life that could be classified as a red light. By a red light, I simply mean anything that seems to stop your forward momentum, slow you down, or force you to wait on God for a period of time. Here are a few examples:

-A missionary arrives on the foreign field with a passion to win the country for Christ. Language school and culture shock often brings his forward momentum to a screeching halt.

-A church is excited to win their city...then loses some key people or suffers a church split. Nothing like a good old-fashion' church split to bring a church to a stop.

-Health problems can be a major red light. Obviously health problems are a red light to the person who is ill or injured, but some health problems can cause an entire family or church to have to wait on God. For example, a pastor friend in California has been in a coma for the past 9 months. That's been a major red light for his church and for his wife and children.

-The death of a loved one can stop a person in their tracks. A good friend and fellow-missionary here in Cambodia lost his dear wife less than 2 weeks ago. I don't think he knows at this point what the future holds for him. He's at a divine red light.

-Sometimes a church faces a logistics problem like finances or a facility. They want to go forward for God, but good intentions don't pay the bills. They want to reach more people, but if they did get more people, they wouldn't have any place to put them. Red light.

-Some red lights are hard to put your finger on exactly what the problem is. God just doesn't seem to be doing anything. It just seems like the wind is out of your sails, and the air is out of your tires.

I suppose the examples of divine red lights are virtually endless. What's yours? Are you sitting at a divine red light right now? As we read the account of the Jerusalem church, we see a good example of what we should be doing if we get stuck at a divine red light.

1. Stay in the car and keep the engine running.

Our culture is so obsessed with success that oftentimes people see a rough patch or a red light as the perfect time to bail out. For example, in the world of professional sports, many athletes will start to abandon ship and look for a new team if their season goes belly-up. Their team may have had a really good year, and they may have potential for some more really good years if they'll just stay together. But because they didn't win the championship, they feel like they failed. Time to move on! Sadly, some people are like that with their church, too. As long as things are going well, good attendance, exciting services, forward momentum...they are in! But as soon as there is a red light...as soon as some families leave, the attendance dips, there is a dry season with few new converts or baptisms, a favorite staff member moves on, etc...they bail out. Sadly, sometimes it's the same way in a family. Many marriages have fallen apart while sitting at a divine red light.

Notice the early church at Jerusalem, and how they handled their red light:

"And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren." (Acts 1:13-14)

Notice also how chapter 2 opens:

"And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place." (Acts 2:1)

They survived their red light, because while they were stuck at it, they stayed together. Imagine if they had all begun to scatter (like after the crucifixion). Imagine if the 120 had dwindled down to 12 because they got discouraged, disheartened, or disoriented by the stop light. But no...they just stuck together. The divine stoplights of life are not the time to walk out on your spouse, your family, your friends, your pastor, your church, or especially your God. When we come to a red light on the road we don't get out of the car and walk off. Why would we do that at a divine stop light?

2. Take care of whatever business you can while you wait.

Suppose a person needs to readjust his seatbelt, pick up a pen that fell to the floorboard, turn to the back seat and scold a child, adjust his mirrors, or send a text message. In those cases, a red light really isn't the end of the world. In fact, a red light can be an opportunity to take care of a few important things. The problem is, many times in our lives and ministries, when we are sitting at a divine stop light, we tend to get lazy. After all, every week just seems to turn out the same as the previous week, so why try. It feels like God's power has been shut off. We've lost some people, and the ones who are still coming seem to be wavering. Be careful! That's a prime time for Satan to move in and convince you to slack off.

When the apostles were stuck at a red light, not only did they stay together, but they also stayed busy.

Notice what they did:

"And in those days, Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said...Men and brethren...of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us...must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection. And they appointed two...and they prayed...and they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles." (Acts 1:15-26)

They had a business meeting which was, incidentally, combined with a prayer meeting! But the point isn't the business meeting itself. The point is that they were busy at the red light. The task at hand, the job that needs to be done, will vary from person to person and from church to church. But it is a mistake to let things slide because "well...we're just kind of in a rut right now."

There are a couple of important principles found here in Acts 1 from which every church could benefit. First, notice that while they were sitting at a red light, they got busy replacing one they had lost. Sometimes we lose people due to death. (I tease with our church people and tell them that if they die, then they have permission to quit coming to church.) More often than death though, we lose people to backsliding. This young church lost one of their friends to both backsliding and death, back-to-back. And his death was not of the "precious-in-the-sight-of-the-Lord-is-the-death-of-His-saints" variety. It is easy for us to write off Judas as a devil. We never knew him other than through the pages of the Bible, in which he is an obvious villain. On the other hand, I believe it was a very difficult time for the apostles and the rest of the disciples when they lost Judas. He was undoubtedly a friend, a companion, and a confidante. Losing someone from the inner circle hurts. In fact, losing someone from the inner circle often goes hand-in-hand with a divine red light. But the church realized that as much as they hurt in their hearts, the work of Christ was bigger than one man, and it had to go forward. Therefore, they replaced him. Sometimes the most important thing a church can do while idling at a red light is to work to replace those we've lost. Don't be discouraged when you don't reach 100 in a month. Just work and pray to replace that one whose loss caused so much heartache.

Not only were they replacing who they had lost, but they were also establishing new leadership. This is definitely related to the replacement principle, but takes it a step further. New leadership needs to constantly be being developed and trained in the church, even in the times when it seems the church has stopped moving. It can feel pointless to train a Sunday School teacher when you're stuck in a small facility (i.e. red light) and don't even have a room to hold another Sunday School class. It is vital that we look for opportunities to train new leadership, because when we train leadership, we are investing in the future. Red lights don't last forever.

3. Keep your eye on the light.

Sometimes it's funny to see a person who has no clue that their light has turned green. Perhaps they're engrossed in a conversation with someone else in their car or perhaps they are playing a game on their phone. I saw a guy recently who fell asleep while sitting at a red light! Sadly, the same thing happens at divine red lights.

The Jerusalem church did not allow that to happen though. Though they were taking care of some business, they were keeping their eye on the light, fully expecting it to turn green soon. Acts 1:14 tells us what they were doing: they were praying! The question is, for what were they praying? I believe they were praying for the Holy Spirit to come. Prayer should be based on the promises of God and the Word of God. I like what E.M. Bounds said about prayer. He said that God's Word is like an orchard, and each of God's promises are like pieces of fruit up in the trees. Prayer is climbing up one of those trees and picking a piece of fruit. There is no doubt in my mind that there was a very special promise at the forefront of every one of their minds. Notice what Jesus had repeatedly promised them just a few weeks previously:

"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever. (Jn 14:16) I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. (Jn 14:18) But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. (Jn 14:26) But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me. (Jn 15:26) It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. (Jn 16:7) Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth." (Jn 6:13) And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high. (Lk 24:49) But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you." (Acts 1:8)

They had definitely been walking in the orchard of God's promises, and one particular promise had caught their eye! They were looking for God's Holy Spirit!

This orchard is still in full bloom today, and God invites His children to climb a tree and partake of His promises. When we are waiting for God to give us a green light, we must take great care not to get distracted by the toys and trinkets of the world. We must beware of spiritual drowsiness, too! The light will turn green, but we need to stay in sync with God. We must stay in the Word and prayer. When we are waiting on God, the answer is never less Bible and prayer. It is always more Bible and prayer. Get in the Bible and find God's promise(s) to you. Then go to God in prayer, believing. Claim His promise. Remind Him of His promise. Plead with Him for His power and blessing. Time spent communing with God and pleading for His Spirit to work is never wasted and is always rewarded.

So that's how the church at Jerusalem handled a divine red light. And boy, did their light ever turn green a short time later! I encourage you, whatever the divine red light is right now in your life or ministry, remember the early church at Jerusalem. Stay together, stay busy, and stay praying.

A Brief History Of Turkeys In Cambodia

2013-11-27T05:55:00.000-08:00

Image courtesy of papaija2008 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I don't exactly know when the first turkey arrived in Cambodia, but when my family arrived here 13 years ago, frozen turkeys cost $70 to $80. Missionaries would gather in large groups for Thanksgiving and pool their resources to buy a turkey. The amount each family paid depended on the size of their family. The host had the unenviable task of collecting from his friends and blocking people's cars in so they couldn't leave without paying. Even for those who opted not to eat, there was usually a $5 surcharge just for sniffing. Every bone was licked clean. Leftovers were out of the question. Those were some dark days.

After learning the Khmer language, we came to the realization that a very important word had been overlooked in our lessons. That word was "turkey." I decided to show a picture of a turkey to some people and discover what the Khmer word for turkey was. After polling numerous Cambodians, they all said the same thing..."moen barang." Moen is chicken; barang is foreigner. And as in many languages, the adjective follows the noun. So...a turkey is a foreigner chicken. Foreigner chicken? Oh, brother! Such a miscarriage of literary justice! But old habits die hard, so "foreigner chicken" it remained.

One day I was driving in a semi-rural area across the river from our church and as I drove by an empty field, I did a double-take. There were about a dozen decent-sized turkeys running around in that field! As I sat on the side of the road on my idling moped, gazing across that field, it was as if I could see an end to the Thanksgiving Day turkey rationing. I could see a day when one man would have a turkey drumstick all to himself. I could see turkey soup, turkey sandwiches, turkey pot pies! I felt like the guy on Chicken Run, only with turkeys. I went home that night with a new life purpose. I had to have one of those turkeys! But over the next few days, before I made the time to try to track down the owner and "talk turkey," the thought occurred to me that while I do love eating turkey, I have no clue how to raise, care for, and fatten up a turkey. Not to mention the butchering part. So (sigh) I gave up my dream.

A few years later I saw another one. This time it wasn't in some random neighborhood. It was in our village...right across the street from our church! There was just one, but it was a big one. When I saw it, I pulled the van over and told the people I was with to "watch this." Then I gave my best turkey gobble out the window. That turkey straightened up instantly and started gobbling back at me while everyone in the van started laughing hysterically. They had no idea that I knew how to talk to foreigner chickens. For the next several weeks, every time we drove by, everyone would quite down and wait for the turkey and me to commence to conversate. I would talk...the turkey would answer. It was hilarious. But alas, all good things must come to an end. One day I drove up to see my buddy, and he was gone. I assume he had taken that journey to the Happy Gobbling Grounds. (sniff)

But some good did come from that short-lived friendship. It opened up many conversations about foreigner chickens. I shared with my Cambodian friends how that on Christmas and Thanksgiving, we love to eat turkey. I told them what a special treat it was to us. And of course, they wanted to know what it tastes like. One of my closest Cambodian friends, a man named Ta, told me in no uncertain terms that regardless of how good it was purported to taste, he most certainly would NOT like to try it. His reason? "That little red dangly thing on it's head looks really gross!" His words. Even after I told him that we don't eat that part, he remained unconvinced. One year he happened to come by our house on Thanksgiving Day, so I made him up a plate of some of our foreigner food, complete with a taste of foreigner chicken. He ate it. But to this very day he claims it was "not good."

Recently, turkey HAS made some inroads here, albeit in some surprising places. A few years ago, a very good pizza place here in Cambodia (Pizza Company) came out with a turkey and cranberry pizza for Christmas. And you know what? It was good!

Thankfully, the price on frozen turkeys has dropped by nearly half in recent years. I was looking at turkeys in the store the other day, and most are $40. These days we usually manage at least a pot of turkey soup after Thanksgiving is over. The curiosity factor is still pretty high among the Cambodians though. Last year when I picked up our turkey, a couple of store employees whom I have known for a long time, followed me all through the store asking some of the funniest questions about what was, to them, a gigantic beast in my shopping cart. They were both enthralled and amused at the same time. They also seemed to think it was pretty cool that they were friends with a guy who knew so much about foreigner chickens.

There was a time in a bygone era when I would have counseled any tribe of turkeys looking to live in peace to come and start a new colony here in Cambodia. But times change. The turkey pizza was an early indicator of these changing times, and today I ran across something that may have permanently sealed the fate of turkeys in Cambodia for all time. Lucky Burger (Cambodia's wildly popular burger franchise) has just introduced a new burger to celebrate Christmas and the New Year. It is a fried turkey burger...with cranberry mayo. And yes, I plan to try it. It may turn out to be a real blessing. If the price of turkeys never goes down any further, then instead of turkey sandwiches and turkey pot pies after Thanksgiving, we can just run to Lucky Burger!

Happy Thanksgiving! And may your foreigner chicken delight your culinary senses!

A Report On Our Medical Clinic

2013-06-12T14:50:00.000-07:00

Amanda Visser treating a patient. This little guy is the son of a
national Baptist pastor.

I'm sure you've heard the saying, "Many hands make light work." Well, it's not always true! Some jobs are so big that even with lots of people helping, it's still heavy. Such was the case two weeks ago when we partnered with Medical Missions Outreach to host a 4-day medical clinic.

Medical Missions Outreach, led by Bradley Edmondson, is a ministry which recruits medical professionals from the U.S. and takes them on trips to foreign countries to provide medical care for people who need it. They partner with independent Baptist churches like ours, so that when the clinic is over and the doctors and nurses are gone, there is still someone to build upon the relationship that has been established and hopefully win the people to Christ. We thank God for opening this door of opportunity for us to partner with this ministry. God blessed with a great turnout, and we were able to treat and provide free medicine for over 800 patients in the four days of our clinic.

The Participants Of The Clinic

Many hands (and there were many!) definitely didn't make the work light; however, having many hands made the work possible. There were 5 distinct groups of people that were involved in this outreach in some way, shape, or form.

1. The Medical Missions Outreach team

Their team of 10 included an emergency room physician, an EMT, 6 registered nurses, and 2 serving in a support role. All in all, the team was very competent and compassionate, and we appreciate them taking time off work and putting out the necessary expense to come and serve the people of Cambodia. Thank you, Bradley Edmondson, Tom Garra, Steve Henson, Marcos and Carolyn Alvarez, Joanna Barch, Ira Daclan, Amanda Visser, Becky Pope, and Kate Pakenham. You touched many lives with your gracious spirits and servant's hearts. God bless you!

The Medical Mission Outreach team from the U.S.

2. The team of volunteers from Singapore

Missionaries Chantha and Susan Chhim brought a group of 11 (3 families) and were a huge help for 3 of the clinic days. The Singapore group provided logistical support in areas like the triage area, the lab, the pharmacy, and escorting patients to the proper places around the clinic. Thank you, Chantha, Susan, Caleb, Corbin, and Carter Chhim, Sun Ming Sheat and Sarah Tan, and David, Shannon, Alyssa, and Jacob Panjwani. You folks were awesome!

Missionary Chantha Chhim and family and the 2 other families they brought
with them from Singapore. (not pictured: Mrs. Shannon Panjwani)

3. The people of Good News Baptist Church of Phnom Penh

Our people were so excited about this clinic, and I was so proud of the way that they all banded together to help. The first way that they helped was by distributing appointment cards for the clinic. Due to the small size of our facility (as well as some other reasons) we knew we would have to get creative in order to accommodate a large crowd of people; therefore, we devised an appointment system that frankly, I wasn't 100% sure would work. Our folks really caught onto the basic system, and in the weeks before the clinic they personally handed out nearly 900 appointment cards to their friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers. Also, a good number of our people spent some time down at the church in the days preceding the clinic helping to prepare the facility. During the actual clinic, our church people helped by translating for the medical team, greeting guests, guarding motos, registering patients, passing out tracts, witnessing, running errands, setting up chairs and straightening them over and over and over, and coming in an night when the clinic was over to clean up for the next day. I'm blessed to pastor such busy and hard-working people!

One of our church ladies, Ming Rhadee, witnessing
to some women who are waiting to see the doctor.

4. Fellow-missionaries here in Cambodia

One thing about which the group from America kept commenting was how nice it was to see a group of missionaries working together so well. Three missionary friends cleared their calendars and came to help every single day: Adam Wood (who lives 3 hours from Phnom Penh), Kounaro Keo, and Rodney Ruppel (who also brought his children and a couple of his key people to help). Several other missionaries were unable to help the whole time due to conflicting schedules, but helped for a day or two: Walter Poole, Chad and Linda Phillips, and Tim and Alison Stephens. These missionaries were absolutely invaluable and were used in every conceivable way. I am both proud and humbled to call them friends.

Left to right: Bradley Edmondson (director of Medical Missions Outreach),
Chantha Chhim (Singapore), Adam Wood (Cambodia), Kounaro Keo
(Cambodia),Rodney Ruppel (Cambodia), and Stephen Benefield(Cambodia)

5. My family

Saving the best for last:) The biggest sacrifice they made for "the cause" was having to live with me for the past couple of months. Seriously, I am very grateful to my family for the ways they helped. My wife cooked excellent meals, cleaned, and watched young children for most of the clinic. My older girls helped in countless ways including translating, taking blood pressure, calling patients, holding babies, etc. I'm so thankful for a hard-working family!

Candace Benefield checking a patient's blood pressure.

The Pattern Of The Clinic

In the days immediately following our clinic, as I pondered all of the happenings, the Lord brought to my mind several comparisons between our clinic team and Christ and His disciples.

1. The Apostles' availability was emulated.

Peter and John went to the temple to pray, and they saw a lame man begging by the temple gate. Peter and John had no silver or gold to give to the man, but they did have something. They had the apostolic power to heal people! Right then and there, they gave the man what they had, and then introduced him to the Lord Jesus Christ.

I shared this story with our people, and challenged them to be like Peter and John. Not to heal people, for that's not a power that we possess...but to be willing to just give what we do have. And that's exactly what happened during the clinic. People who possessed the ability to translate...translated! People who didn't know how to translate, but knew how to pass out tracts, well...they passed out tracts. Every person has different abilities, and God simply asks us to give from that which we have.

Stephen Benefield matchmaking translators with medical providers.

2. Christ's compassion was emulated.

Jesus was always reaching out to those with infirmities, but perhaps nothing demonstrated His great compassion more than when He would reach out and touch...yes, touch...a leper! Cambodia is not known for cleanliness. In fact, it was a bit ironic to me that we had a team from Singapore (where chewing gum is illegal) ministering in Cambodia (where garbage is literally piled high in the streets). I cannot think of a greater contrast in cultures. But when I peeked in the lab (think urine, blood, etc), there were two ladies from Singapore, just working away like they've been doing it all their lives.

It can be a bit shocking to see children defecating on the street. It can be a bit nauseating to see grown men urinating against every wall in town. It can be a bit offsetting when a child has such a bad case of head lice that you can see it from several feet away. But during our clinic I saw people looking beyond these things to the hearts and souls of men. Just like Jesus.

Working in the lab. Left to right: Sarah Tan from Singapore, Soupia from
Good News Baptist, Ira Daclan from the US, and Shannon Panjwani from
Singapore

3. The Disciples' distribution was emulated.

When Jesus fed the 5,000 he had the disciples set the people in groups of 50's and 100's. Then the disciples distributed the food to every person. Not a person was missed, and that probably had something to do with the way they organized the crowd.

But even the best of plans will not work unless someone gets the burden to "work the plan." I'm thankful for the awesome logistics team that came together for this clinic. Chantha Chhim, Dave and Jacob Panjwani, Blake Ruppel, Chad Phillips, and others had it humming!

Chantha Chhim and Stephen Benefield discussing the plan for merging
walk-in patients with the patients who have appointments.

The Product Of The Clinic

Hundreds of man hours and thousands of dollars went into this clinic, so perhaps you are wondering what the clinic produced for the cause of Christ here in Cambodia.

1. An increased passion and renewed compassion in the hearts of those who served.

I have long been of the opinion that oftentimes the people who receive the most benefit from an event like this clinic are not the ones being served, but rather the ones doing the serving. Nothing fires a person up for God quite like serving God. Nothing renews our compassion for the lost quite like spending time with lost people. I can't speak for the folks from America and Singapore, because they all left after the clinic, but I can testify that our church folks have had a renewed excitement about serving God and reaching people in these couple of weeks since the clinic.

God also used the clinic to work in the hearts of my older daughters. As a father, I want my children to have soft hearts towards all people, but especially towards the vulnerable and the needy. I thank God that I saw the hearts of my girls grow more tender as a result of this clinic. One of the most memorable moments of the week for me was when one of my girls witnessed a woman being told by the doctor that her little baby had Down's Syndrome and would not be like other children. The woman cried and cried, and my daughter went home and cried and cried too. I hate to see my child (or any other child for that matter) be hurt or brokenhearted, but what would be even worse is for a person to be so hard-hearted that she can't be broken-hearted. A concentrated time of focusing on others is always a good thing.

Steve Hensen removing a badly ingrown toenail.

2. Several souls saved at the clinic and following the clinic.

Several of our soulwinners had the chance to win people to Christ during the clinic. Here in Cambodia (as in most of Asia) we rarely see a person make a profession of faith in Christ in one sitting. It usually takes at least a couple of sittings, and sometimes many, before a person understands the Gospel sufficiently to make a decision to trust Christ as Savior. But at the clinic, God brought several people in who had previously heard the Gospel and our counsellors were able to lead them to Christ.

One of our church members and her young adult son (both of whom have been in our church for many years) came to help at the clinic. But they brought someone with them...her other son, Seenan. He is 18 years old, and spent 4 of his teen years as a Buddhist monk. I met him for the first time about a week before the clinic. When I met him, he was fairly standoffish. Then when his brother came down to help at the clinic, Seenan came with him. They spent 4 straight days sitting in front of our gate guarding motos while their owners were inside seeing the doctor. Seeing a bunch of Christians treating the community with so much love really made an impact on him, and by that Sunday Seenan had opened up to me and agreed to hear the Gospel. I praise God that this past Sunday afternoon I was able to spend about 2 hours with him, and he trusted Christ as Savior! We are hoping and praying to win some of the patients to Christ, but praise the Lord for one of the clinic volunteers getting saved too!

Kounaro Keo witnessing to some patients.

3. Hundreds of Gospel seeds planted and watered.

Every person who came to the clinic got a couple of different Gospel tracts from one of our soulwinners. Every person who came to the clinic got a 35-page, full-color booklet that presents the plan of salvation. Nearly every person who came to the clinic left us a phone number by which we might contact them. Some of the people who came to the clinic were witnessed to in a one-on-one setting (depending on their interest level) and many of them specifically agreed for us to come to their house and teach them further. It reminded me a lot of Acts 17, when Paul went to Athens to preach the Gospel, and many of the people said to him, "We will hear thee again of this matter." We are now in the process of dividing up all of the prospects, giving certain areas of Phnom Penh and other provinces to the appropriate missionary for follow-up, and calling and visiting those who expressed some interest in knowing more about Christ. We have already begun several salvation studies as a direct result of contacts made at the clinic, and we expect to start more in the coming days.

One thing that has caught me a bit by surprise is how differently our immediate community seems to be viewing us after this clinic. People who live in our neighborhood, people I have known for years and they have never had any interest in church, many of them came to the clinic, and now they are literally "lighting up" each time I cross their paths. It seems so basic, but sometimes we forget that: "People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care." It appears that God is using this gesture of Christian love to soften hearts towards the Gospel.

Walter Poole witnessing to patients.

Conclusion

The clinic was a ton of hard work, but it was a wonderful time! I think it went really well. I am so grateful for each and every person who had a part. I was very happy with how well the teams from America and Singapore integrated with our team from Cambodia. Different languages, different cultures, different life experiences, different talents and abilities...but all serving the same Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

Cambodia has some of the cutest children in the world!

Keep scrolling down to enjoy some additional pictures of the clinic.

Adam Wood handing out and explaining prescriptions.

Alison Stephens working the registration table.

Joanna Barch holding a sweet little baby with Down's Syndrome.

Becky Pope filling prescriptions.

Tom Garra and Stephen Benefield holding up the clinic sign on Sunday
morning while explaining some procedures to the church family.

Stephen Benefield translating for Bradley Edmondson during the Sunday
morning service.

Steve Hensen having a good time with little Baramey, whose mother
was reached by our church as a teenager nearly 10 years ago.

Emma Benefield sitting in a tuk-tuk with Joanna Barch.

Amanda Visser treating patients with Srey Mom (white shirt) as a
translator. Srey Mom and her mom and siblings have been in our church
for about 7 years.

Steve Hensen examining a patient.

A patient receiving a nebulizer treatment.

Marcos Alvarez with two patients.

Seth Benefield smiling and making other people smile (his specialty).

A row of patients, as seen from Google maps. (Just kidding) This picture
was taken from the side porch of our house.

Stephen Benefield getting to know the patients.

Patients waiting to see the doctor and reading Gospel literature.

Deborah and Seth Benefield with a baby who has been brought to the clinic.

The U.S. team arriving at the Benefield's house for dinner.

Another cute patient!

A group of members and regular attenders of Good News Baptist Church,
taken on Sunday, the day before the clinic began. All but one of them
were reached through our church. Four of the ladies pictured helped in
the clinic.

A group of patients waiting...some for registration, some to see the doctor,
and some to receive their prescriptions.

Ira Daclan treating a patient.

Kounaro Keo witnessing to some patients.

Rodney Ruppel registering patients.

Sun Ming Sheat checking blood pressure and temperature.

Tom Garra checking blood pressure.

Kuonaro Keo witnessing to a patient.

Wang, Rodney Ruppel's current pastoral trainee, witnessing
to patients.

Ming Rhadee handing out tract to every patient as they arrive.

Stephen Benefield and Blake Ruppel keeping the crowd organized.

Kuonaro Keo preaching...er...witnessing to some patients:)

Linda Phillips registering patients.

A sweet group of grandma's waiting for their medicine.

Kate Pakenham treating a patient.

Another patient waiting to be seen.

Waiting and reading...

Marcos Alvarez treating a patient, with Hawn (a member
of our church) serving as translator. Hawn got saved
4 years ago, and is a 4th year student in a local university.

Ming Rhadee witnessing to two girls.

The pharmacy team. Left to right: Stephen and Emma Benefield, Carolyn
Alvarez, Joanna Barch, and Susan Chhim.

Rodney Ruppel witnessing to a patient.

Strategizing at Lucky Burger. Left to right: Rodney Ruppel, Chantha Chhim,
Stephen Benefield, and Bradley Edmondson

Stephen Benefield explaining the proper dosage of cough syrup to a patient.

Our top-notch triage team. Left to right: Sun Ming Sheat from Singapore,
Tom Garra from the US, and Alyssa Panjwani from Singapore.

Thankful for the shade!

10 Prayer Requests For Our Medical Clinic Outreach

2013-05-22T09:29:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of Sura Nualpradid at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

This coming week (May 27th - 30th) we will be hosting a free medical clinic at our church as an evangelistic outreach. Healthcare in Cambodia is generally not too good, and many of Cambodia's poorest people do not have the money to obtain even substandard healthcare. God has laid it upon the heart of Bro. Bradley Edmondson, director of Medical Missions Outreach, to bring his team of volunteer medical professionals from the U.S. to conduct this clinic. His team will be providing the medical expertise and the needed medicines, and my team (our church and some other area missionaries) will be providing the translators and logistical support as well as sharing the Gospel. Also, a missionary friend from Singapore, Bro. Chantha Chhim, will be coming with his wife and children and a few of his converts from their new church plant in Singapore. We are excited about this wonderful opportunity to share God's love by meeting some of the physical needs of the people and pray God will open doors to meet the greatest need of all, salvation through faith in Christ.

Here are 10 specific prayer requests for this outreach.

1. Pray for the safety of the team as they travel. Bro. Edmondson's group will be leaving the US sometime on Thursday and arriving here Friday night (the 24th), and Bro. Chhim's group will be arriving on Thursday.

2. Pray for a good crowd of people to come to the clinic. We would like to see a large number of people, but we don't want to have more people than we can effectively handle. So don't pray for a large number, pray for the RIGHT number.

3. Pray for the medical team to have wisdom as they treat people. Good bedside manner can go a long way in convincing someone that Jesus loves them. And so can relief from a medical condition.

4. Pray for no problems with red-tape or government intervention. We have obtained the necessary permission, but still...we shouldn't take anything for granted.

5. Pray for people to be willing to listen to the Gospel. Our desire is to see many saved in the coming days, weeks, and months as a direct result of the clinic.

6. Pray for the translators. This role is being filled by veteran missionaries as well as a few English-speaking Cambodians. This is not always an easy job.

7. Pray for my wife as she coordinate meals for the team. A behind-the-scenes job for sure, but kind of important:)

8. Pray for the entire team (the guests from America and Singapore, and even us locals) to have strength and energy throughout the clinic. It's very hot here right now!

9. Pray for God to do an amazing work in the lives of the volunteers. Setting aside a few days to serve others can have a way of changing one's perspective on life.

10. Pray for EVERYTHING to be done in the power of the Holy Spirit and with His enabling!

Thank you so much for your prayers!

The Benefield's 2011 Furlough Video

2013-04-22T21:04:00.001-07:00

This is the video that we showed on our furlough (fall of '11 through summer of '12). If you are a pastor or church member of one of our supporting churches and we did NOT visit your church on this past furlough, I hope you will take advantage of this opportunity to see a report on your investment in Cambodia.

A number of people who saw this video last year requested a copy or a link where it could be viewed again or shared. Finally...here it is! We originally intended to post this video immediately upon the completion of our furlough, but technical difficulties prevented that from happening. Special thanks to my good friend, Adam Wood, for taking some time to help me figure out and resolve the problem.

Lessons From A Sheepdog, by Phillip Keller (Book Review)

2013-03-11T04:51:00.002-07:00

Lessons From A Sheepdog was written in 1982 by Phillip Keller. I picked up a copy about 10 or 12 years ago at a garage sale and it has sat on a shelf ever since. A couple of months ago while perusing the books in my library and working on a list of books I intended to read in 2013, Lessons From A Sheepdog caught my eye. Now that I've read it, I am convinced that it was God who directed my attention to that book on the shelf.

At first glance, it may seem odd to try to draw lessons about the Christian life from a sheepdog. After all, Christians are called sheep, not sheepdogs. But you can rest assured that Mr. Keller is not trying to change the biblical designation of Christians as sheep. Indeed he makes reference all through the book to this very distinction. However, just as a shepherd often uses a sheepdog to help care for the flock, we who are servants of Christ have the privilege of co-laboring with God to help lead and guide His flock. But this doesn't mean the book is only for pastors or those who are church leaders in some official capacity. Since every believer who is biblically living out their faith will have some measure of influence on others, this book can encourage and strengthen Christians of all ages and situations.

In the first chapter, Mr. Keller tells the story of how in his younger years he was starting a new sheep ranch and was in need of a good sheepdog. He answered a classified ad from an individual who sounded desperate to get rid of a very bad and surly dog. Mr. Keller loved dogs and couldn't stand to see this one destroyed by its incompetent owner, so he agreed to take the dog. Eventually the dog became a loyal and faithful servant to Mr. Keller and was a huge asset to his work as a shepherd. The story presented in that first chapter is well-told and heart-warming in and of itself, but it gets infinitely better in the ensuing chapters as Mr. Keller uses his relationship with his dog to illustrate our relationship with God.

I do have one minor criticism of the book in that the part of his story that was supposed to represent salvation was very ambiguous to me. He told one story about when he chose the dog (and actually took ownership of it) and another story about when the dog (who hated him at first) chose him. It was hard to tell which of those two accounts was his idea of salvation. But other than that one criticism, the book was excellent, convicting, and helpful. Here are a few of my favorite parts.

1. I love his description of the dog's life prior to his change in ownership.

Keller reminds the reader that just as the sheepdog was specially bred for a specific purpose, so likewise man was created to fellowship with and serve our God. Even since Adam sinned in the garden, each subsequent human has been born in their sins, unable to fulfill God's original purpose. Instead, their lives are wasted on sin and self and worthless pursuits. As an illustration, Keller pointed out that the dog, as long as he still belonged to the previous owner, was wasting his life chasing cars and running off after boys riding bikes. What a great example of the wasted life of a person without Christ. Created for a higher purpose, and yet wasting away their life on things that are ultimately of no consequence.

2. I love his description of the dog's joy in obeying his master.

Keller speaks over and over in the book about the fact that once his dog got to know him and learned to trust him, he would obey every last command of his master, not grudgingly, but with joyous excitement. This section of the book was quite convicting. Here's a brief excerpt:

The greatest delusion any man or woman can ever come under is the idea that it is a "drag" to do God's will. Just the oppostie is true! Yet our old natures, our strong, selfish, self-interests, our sensual society, our arch-foe Satan - all endeavor to deceive us into believing that it is a bore and bondage to serve the Master, to carry out His commands in glad-hearted cooperation.

Here is one more excerpt to nail the point home:

Ultimately, finally, our love for God is demonstrated not by some soft, sentimental emotion, but rather in implicit obedience to His will, expressed in our loving cooperation with His commands.

When we comply with His wishes in happy cooperation, our walk with Him, our work with Him, our way with Him become a deep delight. Not only is He immensely pleased, but so also are we.

It never ceased to amaze and stimulate me to see how thrilled Lass was in her whole-hearted obedience. Her eyes would literally sparkle, shine and snap with pure pleasure. Her tail would wag with joy. Her beautiful body was electric, charged, vibrant with ecstatic satisfaction.

This is what she had been designed to do. This is what her breed had been developed to achieve. This was the purpose for which she was placed upon the planet.

And precisely the same held true for me in my personal relationship with Christ. The question was, did I realize this?

3. I love his description of the different ways he would communicate with his dog.

Keller makes a tremendous distinction between the spoken commands and the hand signals that he would use with his dog. When he was first training his dog, all commands were given orally. But since there were many times that they were working on opposite sides of a field or valley from each other, eventually he taught the dog to obey his hand signals. The parallel that he draws here is very astute:

For this sort of command to work well between us, Lass had to learn to keep me in view and give me her constant, undivided attention.

The parallel relationship in our own walk and work with our Master is most important. For as we mature in our spiritual lives we come to understand clearly the providential "hand" of God guiding us.

Early in our experiences with Christ it is imperative always that we discover and determine His will for us in and through the "Word spoken." In time, and with constant application, this word grows so familiar, so well established, so much a force within our wills that it becomes natural and normal for us to comply with His commands.

We then move on to the position where we sense and detect His will being expressed to us by the providential handling of our lives. We actually begin "to look for God's hand" in all the details and events of our days. We become acutely sensitive to His presence. We find our minds, spirits and emotions concentrated on Christ, eager to do His bidding.

This does not happen overnight. Nor does it take place in one short burst of devotion. As with the long months it took Lass to learn hand commands, so it takes us years, in some cases, to sense the unmistakable hand of God active in our affairs, leading us surely, directing us in every details of our personal pilgrimage.

These are just three examples of the great points that Mr. Keller makes in this challenging book. I have a hard time imagining anyone reading this book without being convicted in the area of commitment and faithfulness to our Master. I heartily recommend it!

The Longest Ladder

2013-02-25T19:44:00.003-08:00

Image courtesy of Nattavut / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Harry, Gary, and Larry were walking through the woods one night on the way to their favorite fishing spot. Suddenly they stumbled upon an old, abandoned mine shaft, and all three of the friends fell through the rotten wood and crashed to the bottom. Having managed to survive the fall with just some bumps and bruises, they were soon peering up at the small window of light above them. It was a 50-foot shaft, but it might as well have been 1,000 feet.

“Oh, great!” groaned Gary. “How are we going to get out of this mess?”

“I don’t know” replied Harry. “I’m just glad our gear fell down here with us.” And with that, he grabbed a slightly dented can of beer from their now-broken ice chest. “No reason to let a little thing like this keep us from having a good time.”

“C’mon, Harry! Are you nuts?” This time it was Larry speaking. “We’ve fallen into an abandoned mine shaft, and all you can think about is your beer?”

Harry sneered, “Well, what are you suggesting, Mr. Know-It-All?”

“I’ll tell you what I’m suggesting” said Larry, “I’m suggesting that we’ve got a big problem, and we better get busy if we want to save ourselves.”

“What do you have in mind?” asked Gary.

“Well, you guys can do whatever you want to do, but I’m going to build a ladder to get myself out,” answered Larry.

And that’s exactly what he began to do. First, he made his plan. He would use two of their fishing poles for the sides of the ladder, and with the saw on his swiss-army knife, he would cut the third fishing pole into short lengths for rungs, and he would tie the rungs to the poles using fishing line.

“Hey, wait a second” said Gary. “I didn’t say you could have my fishing pole. I want to make a ladder too.”

Harry just laughed. “You’re both crazy. You’ll never be able to get yourself out of this pit. But if you really want it, you can have my fishing pole, Larry. Go ahead and add it to your massive stockpile of ladder-building supplies.” And so, for the next few days, the three of them fell into a routine. Staying alive by the food that had fallen into the pit with them, each passed the time in his own way.

Larry was determined to get himself out of the mine shaft. He planned and he schemed. He thought and he worked. Always having been a very self-confidant man, he was sure that he could save himself. Every single day he was obsessed with it. Nothing else mattered to him, and he would allow nothing to interrupt his progress. You could almost say that he was religious about it.

Harry was at the opposite end of the spectrum. For him, life had always been more about playing than working. So, he chugged down beer after beer and mocked Larry’s efforts to save himself.

Gary was somewhere in the middle. He really wanted to get out of the pit. He admired Larry’s efforts, and sometimes even emulated Larry’s efforts. But in his heart, he didn’t think they had much of a chance to be saved. Sometimes he would just sit and drink with Harry when he felt particularly despondent.

One morning, after several days of this routine had ensued, Larry cleared his throat, as if to call for the attention of his two friends.

“Look at this,” he proudly said, holding out his rickety fishing pole/ladder contraption. “I think I’m well on my way.”

Gary gave a long, slow whistle of admiration. “That’s great!” he said. Then he hung his head, “I’ve really got to get working on my ladder, too. You inspire me, man.”

Harry just laughed, “It’s 3 feet tall, guys! And it looks like it wouldn’t hold the weight of a half-plucked chicken.”

Larry just stared at his mocking friend incredulously. “You are totally missing the point, Harry.”

“Really? And just what is the point, Genius?”

“The point,” replied Larry with a haughty tilting of his chin, “is that my ladder is longer than your ladder.”

“Uh…Larry? I don’t have a ladder.”

“Ex-act-ly,” said Larry, with a sinister smile.

At that moment, Gary chimed in. “I have a ladder, Larry. Well…sort of…I mean…it’s a ladder of sorts…I mean…sure it’s only 1 foot tall, but…”

Larry continued with his condescending attitude. “Gary, I will admit that you have a…ahem…”ladder”…but still, my ladder is longer than your ladder.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I better keep working on mine if I’m going to save myself.”

“Fools,” Harry muttered under his breath.

But both Gary and Larry continued to construct their “ladders,” using twigs, sticks, or anything else they could find. They were convinced that they could save themselves.

“Today’s the big day!” said Larry.

It had been one week since the three men fell into the mine shaft, and Larry was rousing the other two from their sleep.

“Big day for what?” grumbled Harry sleepily.

“Today’s the day I will get out of this hole all by myself with my self-made ladder,” he announced grandly.

Now they were all awake.

“Do you think it will work?” asked Gary.

Larry answered smugly, “Well, just remember Gary…my ladder is longer than your ladder.”

“Oh yes,” replied Gary, “I had forgotten.” (Gary didn’t like confrontation.)

With an unmistakable flourish, Larry hoisted his ladder against the side of the shaft.

“Good-bye, fellas…I’ll see you later,” he called. And then he stepped up onto the first rung. Slowly he climbed from the first rung to the second rung, and then the third. The homemade contraption groaned and creaked under his weight, but still he kept on climbing. From the third rung to the fourth rung he went, and then on to the fifth. Suddenly he stopped. He was out of rungs. He had only made it five feet up the side of the shaft…not even close to the top.

Dejected, he descended from his not-so-high perch as Harry hooted with laughter and Gary looked on sadly.

“I thought for sure it would be long enough,” he said, to no one in particular. “I mean, after all, it is longer than anybody else’s ladder.”

And then he sat down to search the pit again for anything that might be used to add to his ladder.

A few days later the three were awakened before daybreak by a powerful beam of light shining on them from the opening above them.

Then a distant voice yelled, “It's them!”

They had been found by a search and rescue team.

“We’re going to throw you a rope,” came the cry from above.

Larry quickly cupped his hand to his mouth and yelled back up, “Don’t bother! I’ve got a ladder.”

Gary jumped up quickly and grabbed Larry’s arm. “Maybe a rope is not such a bad idea, Larry.”

Larry glared at him in disbelief. “Why…you little traitor! I’ll have you know this ladder-building experience has been very special to me. It makes me feel good inside.”

Now it was Harry’s turn to try to talk sense into his friend. “That may be so, Larry. It might have made you feel good inside, but it definitely has not gotten you out of this pit.”

“I just have to try harder,” exclaimed Larry.

At that precise moment one end of a good, sturdy rope fell down into the mine shaft and dangled right in front of their faces.

Harry spoke first. “I’ve known all along that there was no chance of saving myself. I figured I would die down here. But now for the first time since we fell down here, I have hope.”

“But you don’t even have a ladder!” argued Larry.

But Harry had already grabbed the rope and was being hauled to the surface. As he ascended he called down, “Don’t worry…they’ll throw it back down. We can all be saved!”

A moment later, Gary was tying the rope around his waist as Larry continued to extol the virtues of his ladder.

“It’s longer than yours, Gary. And Harry didn’t have one at all.”

But Gary had already started his ascent. “Don’t you get it, Larry? Your ladder was longer than mine, but it was still too short.”

After spending several hours trying to convince the third man to grab the rope, the rescue team finally began to pack up their equipment to go home.

“After all,” they explained, “we can’t force someone to be saved who doesn’t want to be saved. Perhaps someday he will wake up to the reality that his short little rickety ladder is worthless. We’ll come back and check on him later and hope it isn’t too late.”

Friend, the whole world is like Larry, Harry, and Gary. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, all of mankind has been in a pit of which there is no escape. That pit is called “sin.” Many people think they can get out by themselves through religion. They will even laud themselves and pat themselves on the back because they are more religious than their neighbor. But the Bible says that all the good deeds and religious ceremonies that we can scrape together will never be enough to get out of the pit of sin. A man can build a ladder of religion that puts his friends and neighbors to shame, but it will disappoint him in the end. The longest of man's ladders are still dreadfully short of God's glory. In order to be saved, we need outside help.

2,000 years ago, a one-man search and rescue team arrived on the scene. His name was Jesus. He was God, but took human form for awhile so that he might carry out His mission. He died on the cross to pay the penalty for the sins of the whole world, and then He arose from the grave on the third day, triumphant over sin, death, and Hell.

His sacrificial death on the cross made it possible for you and I to be forgiven of our sins. Jesus is the rope that was thrown down into the pit of sin. There are just two kinds of people in this world: Those who will grab the rope, and those who insist on saving themselves. You’ll notice that when it came to getting saved from the pit, there was not one iota of difference between the lazy drinker and the ladder-builder. Likewise, there is no difference between the drunk on the street and the most religious man in town. Both are helpless and hopeless in the pit, and both will have to be saved the exact same way.

Have you trusted Christ as your Saviour? Or are you holding on to your religion in the hopes that maybe someday it will be enough to save you. I encourage you today to let go of anything that you are clutching, and instead grab on to Jesus, the only Saviour from sin.

Note: The above parable was written a few years ago after a lengthy conversation I had with a man who thought that he would most certainly gain entrance into Heaven because he was, in his opinion, better than other people. I am considering turning this parable into a Gospel booklet with pictures, in a format similar to The Fun Train. The Fun Train targets the "life-in-the-fast-lane" crowd, while The Longest Ladder is geared towards the religious crowd.

Happiness is...

2013-02-17T22:01:00.004-08:00

Happiness is...

Driving into a village on a Saturday afternoon and seeing kids lining the sides of the road, lessons in hand, waiting to be picked up for church.

Happiness is...
Hearing a bunch of children in the back of the van reviewing their memory verse on the way to church.

Happiness is...

Hearing the sound of rustling pages while preaching the Word of God.

Happiness is...
Having to wait a few extra seconds to start reading your text, because you have new Christians in the church.

Happiness is...
Hearing a man in the church ask you a question about something he read in his Bible that week.

Happiness is...
Driving through the narrow streets of a crowded city and realizing that out of the thousands of people standing along the streets, it is easy to pick out the ones waiting for a ride to church...they are smiling.

Happiness is...
Receiving a text message from a man in the church informing you that he just led two people to Christ.

Happiness is...
Challenging a new convert to try to be up to John chapter 12 by next Sunday, then when Sunday arrives, asking him how far he got and he answers, "I'm done."

Happiness is...
Seeing the sparkle in the eyes of a teenaged girl as you present her with the first Bible she has ever owned in her life.

Happiness is...
Asking a trick question in mid-week Bible study, and nobody falls for it.

Happiness is...
Teaching a Sunday School lesson about "How To Give A Clear Salvation Testimony," then having a woman come to the evening service and tell you that she went straight home after the morning service and shared her personal testimony with 3 longtime friends.

Happiness is...
Picking up a new Christian for church and the first thing out of his mouth is, "Pastor, I prayed about something this week and God answered."

Happiness is...

Listening to someone you led to Christ a few years ago teaching a room full of children about Jesus.

Happiness is...
Having a church member come up to you after church and ask for a stack of tracts, because the ones in the rack have all been taken.

Happiness is...
Listening to a group of Cambodian believers singing "Jesus Loves Even Me" at the top of their lungs.

Happiness is...
Hearing a teenager heartily singing "All Hail The Power Of Jesus' Name" just a little off-key, because you know she's not trying to impress anyone, but rather, she is worshiping her Lord.

Happiness is...
Teaching the song "Take Time To Be Holy" to your church, and having them fall in love with it.

Happiness is...
Seeing a middle-class woman greet a poor woman with a hug and knowing that they've become friends since they met at the cross.

Happiness is...
Serving Jesus in Cambodia.

Happy Anniversary, Pastor and Mrs. Benefield and the Sequoia Baptist Church

2013-02-14T07:02:00.000-08:00

My mom and dad in their early days of ministry at Sequoia Baptist Church

36 years ago my parents moved to Visalia, California, to start the Sequoia Baptist Church. They had four children ranging in age from infancy through 5 years old. I was three. This past Sunday, Sequoia Baptist Church celebrated her 36th Anniversary. My dad is still faithfully preaching the Word of God. My mom is still faithfully serving by his side. Their steadfastness for the Lord has been a great inspiration to me, and I count both of them among my heroes.

My siblings and I (the 4 smaller kids) sitting in church in the late 70's.

Someone once said, "Without a heritage each generation has to start over." I read that quote on a Department of Forestry poster, but it is so applicable to our homes and churches! I am thankful that the four little children in the above picture didn't have to start from scratch when establishing marriages, homes, and ministries. Because of the heritage passed down by our father, our mother, and our church, it's almost like we had a "running start" in life. They taught us how to trust God, how to serve God, and how to live for God, and it gave us the right foundation on which to build our own lives.

So I take this opportunity to wish a very Happy Anniversary to all the people of the Sequoia Baptist Church, and to publicly honor and thank my dad and mom for 36 years of forging the trail for the next generation.

Last year we put together this brief tribute for Sequoia's 35th Anniversary, and I thought this blog post would be an appropriate time and place to share it with friends who may not have seen it. A special thank you to Pastor Steve Nichols for allowing us to use his song "Unknown Heroes." (starts at 2:25)

Shall We Plead With Sinners?

2013-01-31T00:44:00.001-08:00

One of the sad byproducts of this modern age where "tolerance is king" is that Christians have lost the urgency of the Gospel message. We are so afraid of being criticized, ostracized, or marginalized that we oftentimes unintentionally make our presentation of Christ sound like something that can be taken or left with no consequence. I have read statements from so-called "Christian" mission organizations that went something like this: "We are not here to proselytize. We are just here to show the people love and compassion. If they choose to believe like us, that is fine. If not, that is fine too."

To be sure, there are some tactics being used in an attempt to reach people for Christ that are wrong and inappropriate. But just because there are unethical men who would try to bully or trick a person into making a "profession of faith," that does not mean that we should go to the other extreme and be tepid and timid in our presentation of the Gospel. There are times that a person hears the Gospel explained and readily agrees to believe on Christ. But what about the times that a person hears the Gospel and then sets up camp in the valley of indecision? How should we deal with fence-sitters? Should we leave procrastinators alone? Should we simply give them the message from God and then walk away? Is any amount of pressure justified? If so, how much? In other words, shall we plead with sinners?

Consider II Corinthians 5:20:

"Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God."

Most people know this verse by the first phrase, "We are ambassadors for Christ," but we should be careful not to overlook the rest of the verse. It is powerful! It tells us exactly what it means to be an ambassador for Christ which in turn will answer the question, "Shall we plead with sinners?"

First, a few definitions.

There are two verbs in this verse which bear very similar meanings: beseech and pray. To beseech means to entreat; to supplicate; to implore; to ask or pray with urgency, and to pray means to supplicate; to entreat; to urge. These two words do not mean to merely ask or make a request. They are stronger than that. They both include the important component of urgency. It is no stretch to say that to beseech or to pray someone is to plead with them. To plead means to attempt to pursuade one by argument; to supplicate with earnestness; to urge; to press by operating on the passions.

How about the word stead? We don't use that word much these days, but it simply means substitution; replacing or filling the place of another. The word is used 94 times in the Bible, and the great majority of those uses are referring to a king reigning in another king's "stead." But there are a few instances (like II Cor. 5:20) where the word stead is used to indicate a substitution of a different nature. In this case, an ambassador is in stead of Christ, meaning literally that he is a substitute or a replacement for Christ.

There is one more word in this verse that deserves special attention. The word reconciled means brought into friendship from a state of disagreement or enmity. There could be no more perfect word to describe what transpires when a sinner makes peace with God.

So what does it mean to be an ambassador for Christ? Does it mean to put a fish sticker on your car? Does it mean to wear a WWJD bracelet? The verse doesn't say we are advertising executives for Christ. Well, what about inviting people to church? The verse doesn't say we are event managers for Christ. Handing out tracts? The Bible doesn't say we are marketing consultants for Christ. While there is nothing wrong with any of the above activities, and some are even advisable, none of those things capture the essence of what it means to be an ambassador. An ambassador interacts with one person on behalf of another. An ambassador seeks out problems and meets them head-on. An ambassador speaks the truth, then lays out the path to reconciliation. An ambassador pleads for one party to make peace with the other. An ambassador is not passive, but active, pressing for solutions and resolutions of problems. As ambassadors of Christ, we must conduct our King's business with urgency and directness.

1. Our voice is really God's voice.

Paul said to the Corinthian believers that when he came to them as God's ambassador, that meant that the words he spoke to them were as if they came from God Himself. ("...we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us...") That one simple truth will give you a whole new boldness in sharing the Gospel with men. I often tell people, "It is no accident that our paths crossed today. God has a message for you, and He sent me to deliver it." Some may say that is arrogant or presumptuous, but according to the Scripture it is not. As an ambassador, it is my job to speak on behalf of my King. As Ambassadors of Christ, our words don't just line up on the shelf as yet another view or opinion that man can take or leave. Do we really believe that if a man dies without Christ he will go to Hell? Then we must not treat the rejecting of salvation as if one has declined a cup of coffee. This is a serious matter of utmost importance, and we must conduct the duties of our ambassadorship with passion and urgency. When God speaks, we must not take it lightly, and when Christ's ambassador speaks to lost men, God has indeed spoken.

2. Our compassion is really God's compassion.

When Paul went to Corinth preaching the Gospel, he was not content to just give them God's message and then walk away. No, he recognized that he was in Christ's stead. (...we pray you in Christ's stead...") He knew that he was Christ's substitute in urging these people to believe. You see, Christ was our substitute on the cross, but we are His substitute in this world. When we implore a person to trust Christ, we are not imploring them for ourselves. We are imploring them in the place of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. This is the same Jesus who is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. This is the same Jesus who was moved with compassion when he saw the multitudes scattered abroad as sheep having no shepherd. This is the same Jesus who loved the world so much that He willingly laid down His life on the cross. It is this very same Jesus for whom we are a substitute. Paul urged and begged the lost of Corinth to be saved because He was urging them in Christ's stead.

3. Our message is really God's message.

It is important to note that all of that urging and imploring and pleading was for one thing: that they would be reconciled to God. ("...we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.") Remember, to be reconciled means to be brought into friendship from a state of disagreement or enmity. The reason that God begs and pleads with men to be brought into friendship with Him is precisely because the opposite of friendship is enmity. A Holy God cannot have friendship with sinful men. It is our sin that creates the enmity, but God has made a way that sins may be forgiven. One who refuses God's pleading is yet in a state of enmity with God and will suffer the consequence. God pleads for man to "make peace" because He loves them and does not want to see them perish.

So...should we plead with sinners? It is plain to see in the Word of God that God doesn't want us to be lackadaisical or casual in presenting His Gospel on His behalf. It is God's message, not ours. We are His substitutes - serving in His stead. If He considers it to be big news, so must we. If He considers it to be nonnegotiable, so must we. If He considers every man worthwhile, so must we. If He has a great longing for all men to be saved, so must we. If He would plead with men who are still undecided, so must we.

Obviously we cannot force anyone to believe on Christ, but neither let us give up so easily. Shall we plead with sinners? We better plead with sinners, because that's our job as ambassadors of Christ. We are to present His message, and we are to strongly and passionately urge people to accept that message. If they have excuses, we need to have answers. If they have reasons to wait, we need to have reasons to not wait. If they have objections, we need to deal with their objections one by one and convey to them that in all of life, there is no decision of greater importance than the decision to trust Christ as Savior.

If, after pleading with a man on behalf of God, he still rejects the Gospel, then it is not time to quit pleading. It's just time to redirect our pleading. Just like we ought to plead with man for God, we also need to plead with God for man. Job 16:21 says, "O that one might plead for a man with God, as a man pleadeth for his neighbour!" We are never truly out of options. We plead with a man on God's behalf. Then we plead with God on that man's behalf, that God's Holy Spirit would soften His heart and reveal to him his great need of a Savior. Then plead with the man for God. Then plead with God for the man again. The stakes are too high to give up with minimal pleading. The great need of the day is for men who would plead with man for God and plead with God for man.

Enough To Go Around

2013-01-22T11:23:00.000-08:00

In 1980, Cambodia was just emerging from one of the most horrific periods of time that any nation has ever endured. Between 1975 and 1979, the brutal Khmer Rouge regime, under the leadership of the infamous Pol Pot, abused the Cambodian people in a way that is hard to describe and even harder to comprehend. An estimated 2 million people died either of starvation, malnutrition, or disease or were killed outright by the Khmer Rouge. When the North Vietnamese defeated the Khmer Rouge in 1979 (or at least drove them out of the highly populated areas and into their jungle hideouts) they assumed by default the responsibility of picking up the pieces of the Khmer Rouge's razing of the country and its people. I recently read an account of that time in Cambodia's history and the difficulty that was faced in getting emergency aid distributed to the people, and it gave me some things to think about with relation to the Great Commission.

Rats in the Rice

When the Vietnamese rolled into town, their first task was dealing with the starvation, malnutrition and sickness that abounded on every hand at some of the greatest levels ever seen in modern history. Sadly, when foreign aid and relief began to come flooding in, they had a very difficult time getting it properly distributed to those who were in need. Ships waited for weeks to dock and unload, because of the interminably long time (mostly due to inefficiency) that it took to unload each ship. Once rice and other aid was unloaded, the distribution was just as bad, if not worse. Various aid organizations had donated 1,100 trucks for delivering food and relief supplies, but they were misappropriated, kept mostly around Phnom Penh and used for transporting people. Meanwhile, the stockpile of rice and other food items was getting infested with rats as it sat undelivered. Journalist Henry Kamm went on a 500 mile journey on the main roads and saw only 3 of the relief trucks. Every time he stopped in a village, he was told the same story: very little rations had been delivered and no seed at all. Mr. Kamm told of meeting a 25 year-old man who pedaled his bike for two weeks from Kampong Cham province to Phnom Penh in search of rice. With 80 pounds of rice strapped to his bike rack he began to push it back home. His family was waiting, he said. Instead of distributing the relief supplies and food, certain people at the top of the "food chain" were hoarding it. High ranking Cambodian officials were eating very well while the rest of the people were still starving. Many who had enough for their own family seemed unconcerned with the plight of those who had nothing.

Does this sound vaguely familiar? Christ commissioned the church to deliver the Bread of Life to the world, but sadly there is a bottleneck in the distribution. I don't think it is an overstatement to say that there is a lot of Gospel-hoarding going on. In America a person would have to work very hard to NOT hear the Gospel. It is everywhere. Churches in just about every town in America have services, Bible studies, small group meetings, institutes, camps, seminars, conferences, workshops, etc. going on constantly. Not only are there multiple translations of the Bible, but these days there are specialized Bibles for just about every demographic known to man. You can have your Bible in traditional form, story book form, comic book form, chronological, topical, devotional, on your ipad or iphone, and on and on it goes. I just checked on the website of a major Bible distributor. Under the heading of "Bibles" there are 6,984 products! Most families (including mine) have multiple copies of the Bible lying around their house.

Please don't misunderstand me. I do not believe it is a sin to be well-fed. It's just a sin to hoard the Gospel, to heap more and more upon yourself without any thought for those who have yet to receive a morsel. For every one person who suffers from spiritual obesity, there are thousands who suffer from spiritual malnutrition. When Jesus told the 5,000 men on the hillside to sit down for a meal, He didn't tell His disciples to feed the same 50 people over and over until they were ready to burst. No, He told them to feed everyone. The ones that were close and the ones that were the farthest away. The back row as well as the front row. We would do well to remember the story of the 4 lepers in II Kings 7. When they discovered that the Syrians had fled and abandoned their tents and food, they began to eat (and who can blame them...after all, they were starving). But then one turned to the others and said, "We do not well: this day is a day of good tidings and we hold our peace." One of those guys realized that they themselves had been starving until God dealt graciously with them, so he felt indebted to their fellow-countrymen who were still starving. Similarly, the Apostle Paul said, "I am debtor." It is a wonderful day when a person comes to the conclusion that the only reason they are no longer starving for the truth is because of God's grace, and then decides that everyone else in the world deserves to know about this grace too.

Sorry, today's a holiday...

Another problem that greatly hampered the aid distribution was the fact that the workers were so easily and quickly distracted from the task at hand. Holidays came along with unbelievable frequency and every single one of them brought the life-saving work of distributing food and medical supplies to a screeching halt. Mr. Kamm reported that while he was in Phnom Penh, one Sunday all work stopped for three days to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Work resumed Wednesday, but stopped again the very next day for another national holiday. He said (obviously tongue in cheek) that the next week was more rigorous because only one holiday stopped the work. The same problem also affected the distribution of medical supplies. An international medical official went quickly to the Health Ministry when he heard that a much-needed and long-delayed planeload of medical supplies had arrived. But when he arrived (on a Friday), he was told that he could not obtain the supplies until at least Wednesday (due to the New Year celebration), but for sure by the next Friday. After living here for 12+ years, I don't have a bit of trouble believing that account. It's frustrating to deal with this type of thing now, but in 1980, during the early days of recovery for this traumatized nation, when several days of delay could have meant the difference between life and death, it must have been a hundred times more exasperating to those who were trying to get the job done. In their hour of greatest need, the distraction of holidays rendered the relief efforts to be incredibly and painfully slow.

How often this is the case when it comes to getting out spiritual relief to a hungry and dying world! Many churches in America are distracted by every new fad and trend that comes down the pike while failing to remember that our number one purpose is to reach the world with our life-saving message. Want to gauge a church's commitment to God's Great Commission? Look at the church calendar and the church budget. Even more telling, look at the youth group's calendar and budget. How much time and money is spent on distractions? And how much time and money is spent on our main purpose? To be sure, there is nothing wrong with a teen snow trip, just like there was nothing wrong with Cambodians celebrating an occasional holiday. But, please! A little moderation! When the main task is sacrificed on the altar of continual distractions, it is time for an adjustment of priorities. Of course, it is easy to point the finger outward and say "Churches are too distracted," but the truth of the matter is that often there are just as many distractions or more in our personal lives. A missionary, though he has left the home country to help spread the Gospel around the world, can easily allow distractions to so overwhelm his life that the task which is supposed to be in first-place fades to a distant second or worse. We need God to help us to minimize, reduce, and even eliminate distractions so that our hearts may stay focused on the job He has given to us.

You can't eat a teapot

A third issue that greatly hindered the relief effort in post-Khmer Rouge Cambodia was that ships bearing non-essentials tied up to the docking berths and the ships with the essentials could not get in. One one occasion, Mr. Kamm saw a Russian unloading crates from a Soviet freighter. When he asked what was in them, he was stunned at the reply: teapots. Crate after crate off a non-essential item was being unloaded while the relief goods and the food of which the people were in desperate need was sitting in the ships anchored in the harbor.

To me, the teapots seem symbolic of the trinkets and trivialities that are so often offered to people in lieu of what they really need - the Gospel. It's unbelievable how many aid groups, humanitarian agencies, and even missions organizations come to a place like Cambodia and teach the people everything but how to be saved. Of course, there is nothing wrong with teaching English, computer skills, or musical instruments any more than there is something wrong with using a teapot. Certainly it has its place. But starving people can't eat teapots.

Probably the saddest thing about this story is that there was no shortage of aid, but from deep within the villages of Cambodia, it must have seemed like there was. Inefficiency, hoarding, distractions, and wrong priorities kept the needed aid out of the hands of the needy. When we consider the spiritual aid that we are here to distribute, the soul-saving Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, there is no shortage either in amount or in efficacy. There's plenty of God's love, grace, mercy, forgiveness, and salvation to go around. But we need to work smart. And we need to distribute the Bread of Life with compassion. It's not enough that my family knows the Lord. Every other man, woman, boy, and girl deserves to know Him too. We need to work through the distractions. Take breaks and rest as God has instructed, but be careful not to slip into lethargy. Some distractions need to be eliminated completely because there is no redeeming value in them. And finally, let's make sure we are not just giving out shiny trinkets, but that which will last for all eternity. What a tragedy for someone to live a life of total spiritual malnutrition and starvation and sadly assume there just must not be enough Bread for him to get some too.

Note: My source for the information contained in this post was chapter 16 of the book, "Cambodia: Report From A Stricken Land" by Henry Kamm. I highly recommend the book to anyone with an interest in Cambodia's history, especially the past few decades.

Such As I Have Give I Unto Thee

2013-01-16T07:00:00.002-08:00

During the month of January, I am teaching a series in Sunday School on "How To Lead Others To Christ." I'm thankful that on the whole, our church members are unashamed to identify with Christ. They are constantly requesting Gospel tracts to hand out, consistently bringing friends, family, and neighbors to church, and continually taking flak for their faith in Jesus Christ. However, when it comes to Christians being able to personally lead a soul to Christ, we need to grow. We have some who are very competent in that area, but not enough.

Two Sundays ago, after I preached from Acts 8 about Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch, a good number of our people raised their hand in the invitation to express the following decision: "I have never personally led someone to Christ, but with God's help, I want to establish a goal this year to both learn how to lead a soul to Christ and actually lead someone to Christ." I would like to ask my blog readers who pray for our ministry to make this issue a matter of prayer in 2013.

Interestingly, just a few days after preaching this message, I was reading a devotional by Charles Spurgeon and I came across this:

We should not desire to be known by others for our virtue or for our zeal. But at the same time, it is a sin to always try to hide that which God has bestowed upon us for the good of others. A Christian is not to be a village in a valley, but a city set upon a hill. He is not to be a candle under a bushel, but a candle in a candlestick, giving light to all. (Matthew 5:14-15) Retirement may be lovely in its season, and to hide one's self is modest, but the hiding of Christ in us can never be justified. The keeping back of truth which is precious to us is a sin against others and an offense against God. If you are of a nervous temperament and retiring disposition, take care that you do not indulge in this trembling tendency too much, lest you become useless to the Church. In the name of Him who was not ashamed of you, decide to ignore your feelings. Tell others what Christ has told you. If you cannot speak with the sound of a trumpet, use the still, small voice. If the pulpit is not your platform, if the press does not carry your words, say with Peter and John, "Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I unto thee." (Acts 3:6) Talk to the Samaritan woman by the well if you cannot preach a sermon on the mountaintop. Utter the praises of Jesus in the house, if not in the temple; in the field, if not in the city; in your own household, if you cannot speak in the middle of the great family of man. From the hidden springs within let sweetly flowing streams of testimony flow forth, giving drink to every passer-by. Do not hide your talent. To speak for God will be refreshing to ourselves, cheering to saints, useful to sinners, and honoring to the Savior.

I sure love the way he puts things! We may not have the largest audience, the widest influence, the deepest well-spring of Bible knowledge, or the smoothest delivery style, but we can all speak a word on God's behalf. As Peter and John said, "Such as I have give I unto thee." God does not hold us accountable for that which we do not have, but rather for that which we have. If Christ has done anything for you...if He has forgiven your sins and saved your soul...if He has answered a prayer or lifted a burden...if He is real to you today, then you have something helpful and heavenly to give to others. May each of us speak of Christ often in this new year and earnestly seek to lead souls to Christ!

Year In Review - 2012

2013-01-09T21:05:00.001-08:00

I am trying something new. While I was thinking about writing a "year-in-review," I realized that I had already written a summary of my year...via twitter. And because twitter was written as the year happened instead of after it was over, I like the freshness of it. So I have taken selected twitter updates and repurposed them as a summary of what 2012 was like for our family and ministry.

Those of you who use twitter and follow me may not want to spend time on this post, as it is all information you have probably already seen. On the other hand, for those who do not read our twitter updates, you may be interested in this "diary-style" perspective of our ministry.

I am aware that there are many who do not use twitter, so let me give a couple of words of clarification. First, the reason every post is so short is because twitter limits the characters in a post to just 140. Second, when you come across symbols like @ and #, just ignore them. They are used by twitter users to connect with other twitter users.

God gave us a wonderful year, and we hope our friends and family will enjoy hearing about some of the things they might have missed.

January

2^nd

Spent New Year's Day in services at Grace Baptist Church of Flower Mound, TX. We sure have been blessed with some great supporting churches!

4^th

Good to see some old friends this week. He taught me in high school & she was my piano teacher. Thankful for their investment in my life.

Six really cool kids at the Alamo:

5^th

Wonderful service last night @ Trinity Baptist, Arlington, TX. I got the sense that they truly do pray for our ministry. That's encouraging!

Attended a fellowship mtg this morning. Heard great preaching & was blessed to hear them conduct their church-planting business w/ passion.

9^th

Wonderful day at Southwest Baptist in Oklahoma City yesterday. Pastor Gaddis and the entire church were incredibly gracious hosts.

A large, packed-out auditorium belting out "And Can It Be" & "How Great Thou Art" = proof that you don't have to use CCM to build a church.

Sold 130 books to 3 different pastors in the past 3 days, and got an email today from a new church taking us on for support. Amen!

10^th

We're in Grants, New Mexico. It's 22 degrees, snow everywhere, and this missionary family from Cambodia is FREEZING!

14^th

Glad to be back in California! Enjoyed breakfast and prayer with the men in our home church this morning. So blessed to have good friends.

16^th

Enjoyed being in a brand-new church yesterday ( @lbcoakdale ). The hope for America is more Bible believing, Christ-proclaiming churches!

22^nd

Wonderful day all day @ Gethsemane Baptist, Long Beach! Thankful 4 opportunities 2 teach & preach today & 2 speak Khmer w/ several people.

24^th

At Coast Hills Baptist, Santa Maria 4 miss. conf. Enjoyed seeing many old friends last night, encouraged 2 see they are still "keeping on."

28^th

Enjoyed taking my 4 older kids on a school trip to tour the state capitol in Sacramento yesterday.

29^th

Taught SS & preached at my home church this morning. Met several new families! Looking forward to hearing @mikefarrell1975 preach tonight.

Praying 4 @TimBenefield & Golden Valley Baptist Church today 4 their charter-signing service. Looking forward 2 hearing a report of the day.

31^st

Thoroughly enjoyed teaching in our Bible Institute tonight. Encouraged to see people give an extra night per week to study the Word of God!

Got sad news today that a little girl in our village ministry drowned over the weekend. Please pray for her family and for @Chad_A_Phillips.

Please pray for the family of GIBF missionaries to Mexico, John and Wanda Casias, both murdered today in a home invasion there in Mexico.

February

1^st

Great Bible study 2night @ Sequoia. After 35 years of pastoring, my dad still has absolute confidence in the Word of God. I appreciate that.

2^nd

Recently heard someone disparaging missionaries in Mexico as "wanting an easy field, wanting to stay close to mama." How utterly uninformed!

How I thank God for every missionary to Mexico - true soldiers of Christ, hazarding their very lives for the sake of the Gospel!

6^th

Presented our ministry to Golden Valley Baptist in Patterson yesterday morning. @TimBenefield and his wife are doing a great job there!

Thankful for the opportunity to report & preach at Regency Baptist in Orangevale last night. Pastor Nichols always encourages & inspires me.

12^th

Preached all day 4 Pastor Mike Ray @ Hopewell Baptist in Napa. So good 2 see all our old friends. It was an awesome day from start 2 finish!

15^th

Hopewell's choir all day Sunday, now 3 straight nights of Sequoia's choir. I could get used to this! Looking forward to the next two nights!

Tremendous message by Charles Sanders tonight. Nothing like listening to a man who's been preaching 50+ yrs and still has a tear in his eye.

20^th

My friend, Pastor John Gillespie of Flower Mound, TX went 2 Heaven on Saturday. He was just 51. Please pray 4 his hurting family & church.

Sad & hurting today for the Cretzman family in the sudden homegoing of little Azlynn. Praying God will strengthen them in this deep valley.

Drove for 6 hours today. Couldn't hold back the tears every time I looked at my children in the mirror. They are truly a gift from God!

Heaven is sounding sweeter all the time.

21^st

Sunday a.m. we were at Landmark Baptist, Santa Rosa. Pastor Opferman & his people have a big heart & sacrificial spirit for the Lord's work.

Sunday p.m. at New Hope Baptist, Santa Rosa. Had a great service! Enjoyed fellowship w/ Pastor Maricle B4 church & a church family after.

Enjoying the book "50 People Every Christian Should Know" by Warren Wiersbe...and I still have some of the most intriguing people ahead!

26^th

Spent the day at Immanuel Baptist, Delano, CA. Always a privilege to report back to faithful supporters. Glad to see God working in Delano!

If there had been Nike's in the 1st century, I think their slogan would have been "Perform the doing of it!" (II Cor. 8:11)

March

1^st

Helping my three girls with their Science Fair projects tonight. We are hoping to solve some of life's most puzzling & perplexing problems:)

If my calculations are right, I'll never have all six of my kids doing a Science Fair project in the same year, for which I am thankful.

3^rd

Had a great time soulwinning today with a man in our home church. People are basically the same everywhere...empty, hurting, and searching.

4^th

Enjoyed being at Sequoia Baptist today. Great teaching & preaching. I appreciate a pastor who preaches the Word of God without apology!

"The Word of God has been accurate to the degree that it can only be divine." -Robert Benefield

5^th

Spent the day w/ some men from church removing light fixtures worth thousands from a building set 4 demolition. Americans sure waste a lot!

6^th

Great to see my sister, brother-in-law, nephews and niece from Estonia tonight. Haven't seen them in 5 and 1/2 years.

@Ron_Winkler @Rachel_Winkler @mikefarrell1975 @mikeandbeckyf It's official...Winklers are tall. Benefields are medium. Farrells are short.

8^th

Had the opportunity to share the Gospel with a Muslim woman from Iran today. She did not get saved, but she listened & that's a good start!

10^th

So excited to hear how God is working in Patterson at GVBC! 1 saved last Sunday, 1 saved on Wednesday, 2 saved on Friday. Praise the Lord!

In honor of the Indian chief who cut the end off his blanket & sewed it 2 the other end 2 make a longer blanket, I've just changed my clock.

12^th

Great day at Lighthouse Baptist, Moreno Valley! @PastorJPreston & his people have an obvious desire to know about & pray for our ministry.

A teen told me last night that the teenagers on our video encouraged him 2 take a stand 4 Christ at his public high school. Praise the Lord!

21^st

Enjoyed being at Bethel Baptist w/ Pastor Davidson in Santa Ana this past Sunday. Such gracious people! It's always encouraging to go there.

22^nd

My 6 yr old son is learning about even & odd numbers. Today he said in exasperation: "I just don't see what's so odd about those numbers!"

26^th

Preached @ New Testament Baptist in Hanford yesterday am & pm. Great spirit in services & we enjoyed the fellowship w/ Pastor King's family.

30^th

Enjoyed spending the last 4 days at a school competition w/ 3 of my girls. They did awesome, as did my nephews & nieces. Proud of them all!

April

3^rd

Saw part of @Ron_Winkler's video report about Estonia today. It's awesome! I hope some new churches will get behind this exciting ministry.

6^th

Claiming to be a Christian while denying the Resurrection is like removing the bottom floor of a skyscraper & expecting it to stay standing.

If Christ be not risen, we are of all men most miserable. But Christ IS risen, so we should be of all men most joyful!

9^th

Thoroughly enjoyed Resurrection Sunday at Mountain View Baptist in Modesto w/ Pastor John Simmons. What a great spirit and friendly folks!

Yesterday was the first time I've ever preached in a 6:00 am service. Impressed by the crowd & the sharp, smiling youth choir that sang!

11^th

My daughter is heading out for her first youth conference. Hoping she loves it & praying God will use it in her life. Thanks @wcbc_today

Started a missions conf. tonight at Tabernacle Baptist in Concord. Nobody wanted to leave afterwards. I think church should be like that!

After church a 74 yr-old man said: "I've prayed for missionaries my whole life, but tonight I told God that I want to pray more." Amen!

Ate at Five Guys for the first time tonight. I give them an A for flavor and an F for price.

12^th

Another great service tonight at Tabernacle Baptist. It's such an encouragement to see people tenderhearted about the lost around the world.

13^th

Got home today after 4 days on the road without my family and Seth (2) said, "I've been looking for you, daddy!"

Had a chance today 2 witness briefly 2 a young man from Afghanistan and invite him 2 church. Perhaps God brought him here 2 learn of Christ!

Talked w/ @Chad_A_Phillips for over 2 hours today re: our ministry in Cambodia. Thankful 4 his love 4 our people & his service 2 the Lord!

14^th

Perfect weather today for driving through No. Cal. & Oregon. It's been fun travelling with @Ron_Winkler and family, but I sure miss my own:(

15^th

Great services today at two great churches: Willamette Valley Baptist of Salem, OR, in the a.m. and Faith Baptist of Tacoma, WA, in the p.m.

16^th

I love this faith-filled sentence from an email I just received from one of our Cambodian church members:"Whatever in future, he know all."

17^th

Flew into Fresno today. I met two Cambodians at the airport, and I just happened to have a few Cambodian tracts in my bag! Thank you, Lord.

Read a good little book today on the plane - "Things I Wish I'd Known Before We Got Married" by Gary Chapman. Very practical material.

18^th

My wife, the philosopher: "I don't read book introductions. It just makes the book longer." Well, I guess I can't argue with that:)

Heard tonight that a new convert my dad is currently discipling drove to Sacramento last week and led his ailing grandfather to Christ!

22^nd

"I am convinced that many Christians come to a point in their lives where absolutely NOTHING is done by faith." -Pastor Robert Benefield

29^th

Thoroughly enjoyed the day at Barstow Baptist. Glad we got to see not only Pastor Lundy & family, but also former Pastor Hampton & his wife.

Haven't been to Barstow Baptist in 7 years. Met both veteran Christians & new Christians, all of whom are excited about the Lord & missions!

May

3^rd

Great mtg last night at Central Valley Baptist in Manteca w/ Pastor Tharpe. They were very responsive to our video report & the preaching.

Bro. Mel Hall has been reaching kids for years with Gospel magic. This morning he gave me a bunch of new stuff to use. What a blessing!

4^th

Enjoyed some time today w/ Candace & some of her friends celebrating her 13th birthday. I'm officially the father of a teen. Yikes!

8^th

Good services this past Sunday a.m. at Calvary Baptist in Oroville. Pastor Taylor & his people have been faithful supporters for many years.

Privileged 2 B w/Pastor Ruhl @ Pleasant Valley Baptist in Chico this past Sun. pm. Thankful 2 call them partners, proud 2 call them friends!

Thinking about Bro. Hudson (missionary to the Ukraine) & his 3 kids. Tomorrow is Mrs. Hudson's Homegoing Service. Please pray for them.

14^th

Wonderful time at Hopewell in Napa yesterday. Such a precious church to us! Privileged to fill Pastor Ray's pulpit while he is overseas.

My wife, looking at a goofy Mr Potato Head creation by Gabby: "It looks like daddy." Gabby: "No it doesn't. Daddy doesn't have a green hat."

18^th

Heard 5 outstanding messages at Master's Men today. Great fellowship too. Looking forward to tomorrow!

19^th

Very challenged by the preaching today at Master's Men. My favorite message today: "Ten Times Better" by Lou Rossi. Powerful!

When I was a kid, we prayed often 4 R next-door neighbor 2 B saved. I saw him today @ Master's Men. He got saved 2 yrs ago! Unbelievable!

21^st

Good day yesterday in Merced/Atwater. Met Pastor Miller for 1st time & reconnected w/ Pastor Doss. Two sharp men doing good work 4 the Lord!

24^th

Great night last night in Reno...in church:) Encouraged by the kindness of Pastor & Mrs Ralstin and the people of Lighthouse Baptist.

26^th

Privileged 2 present our ministry thurs. night 2 a brand new church, Victory Baptist in Fresno. God is using Pastor Owens & VBC greatly!

I read this extremely well-put little nugget of wisdom yesterday: "Let's not be so openminded that our brains fall out!"

27^th

With Pastor Graves @ Liberty Baptist in Norwalk this a.m. So happy 2 see the facility that God has provided 4 them since we were last there!

28^th

Stopped @ McKee Rd Baptist last night on way 2 Visalia. Pastor Fies put gas in my tank & bought corndogs, sodas 4 my kids. What a guy!

30^th

Had brkfast ystrday w/ my parents & 3 siblings. Probably 15+ yrs since just us 6 went out together. So thankful 4 a family that serves God!

31^st

Just finishing up a really fun day visiting the Reagan Presidential Library with my daughter, Candace (13). What an awesome place!

Saw Pres. Reagan's mother's Bible today. Next to II Chr. 7:14, she had written:"A most wonderful verse for the healing of the nations."

June

3^rd

Proud of my 4 oldest children and 9 nieces & nephews who sang with a bunch of other children in the youth choir this morning. Beautiful job!

7^th

Dropped in for services at Victory Baptist in Burbank tonight. Enjoyed meeting @PastorBadger & family. What an exciting ministry!

10^th

Glad to be at Bible Baptist Church in Delano this a.m. for the Grand Opening of their new facilities. Pastor Serrano is doing a great job!

I was suspicious that the kid in front of me in church wasn't paying attention. Then he started doing the macarena and I knew for sure.

Tremendous service tonight @ Calvary Baptist in Temecula. Wonderful people! Also enjoyed great fellowship afterwards w/ Pastor & Mrs. Rench.

11^th

Excited 2 B at #rootedconf in Lancaster w/ my wife. Our 1st one in 12 years. Looking forward to tonight's service!

12^th

Great opening service at #rootedconf! Also enjoyed reconnecting with friends before and after the service.

13^th

Wow, what a day at #rootedconf! Outstanding preaching, teaching, music, and fellowship all day long.

14^th

Loved Leadership Conference! If I lived in the U.S. I would make it a priority to go often if not annually. #rootedconf

16^th

Please pray 4 @Chad_A_Phillips as he deals today w/ a family in our church whose dad died a few hours ago. PTL he was saved!

I don't like being so far away when friends and church members are hurting:( Glad I can still pray!

22^nd

This past Sunday we enjoyed participating in Missions Emphasis Day at Lancaster Baptist Church. LBC always challenges & encourages me!

Just got home from teen camp. Thankful 4 the opportunity 2 preach 8 times 2 some great teens. Praise God for 2 saved & many other decisions!

24^th

My dad preached on the rapture this morning with both passion & compassion. If I wasn't saved already, I would have gotten saved today.

"We can't solve our sin problem. Only Jesus can solve our sin problem, but boy can He solve it!" -Robert Benefield

26^th

Tried garlic ice cream today in Gilroy. I guess culinary adventures are not only for the foreign mission field:-)

29^th

Re: Supreme Court - We can get over our disappointment w/ those who sit on the bench if we will keep our eyes on Him Who sits on the throne.

July

17^th

We're back in Cambodia! There's no place like home!

Most people's 1st errand after moving is probably to pick up a few groceries. In Cambodia, the first errand is to go get a can of Raid!

20^th

Not long ago Ming Heung (mom of 3 church members) was antagonistic 2 the Gospel. Last night she was in church. Please pray 4 her salvation.

21^st

Got to witness to 2 people today. Both have promised 2 B in church tomorrow where we'll assign workers 2 continue teaching them the Gospel.

What a joy to reunite with the children in our village ministry! Great crowd today. @Chad_A_Phillips has done a terrific job in my absence!

22^nd

We've been praying for Ming Heung for a long time. I was informed today that she got saved Friday! Her 3 young adult children are thrilled!

Enjoyed church so much today! Very little stirs my soul like hearing a church full of Cambodian believers belting out "There Is A Fountain."

24^th

Saw a package of garbage bags at the store today that said: "degradable garbage bags." Apparently you can call them mean names.

25^th

Enjoyed spending a few hours this morning w/ @thompsrus giving him a thorough report on our ministry and the grand tour of our "Jerusalem."

Picked up a Vietnamese Bible today for Ming Heung who got saved last week. Looking forward to giving it to her tomorrow night at church.

26^th

In past 10 days, 3,000+ Cambodians have travelled 2 a village where a 40 ft log, recently pulled from pond, is believed 2 have magic powers.

A man named Mr. Dork was quoted in today's paper. Sometimes spelling foreign names with English letters leads to very unfortunate results.

28^th

Had good visits this a.m. a great service in the village this afternoon. Looking forward to having @thompsrus preach for us tomorrow.

29^th

Had a good crowd, a great spirit, and 4 baptisms this morning. Also enjoyed our quarterly potluck & song/testimony service. I love church!

@thompsrus preached on "worry" from Mt. 6. Many testimonies this afternoon were about how God spoke 2 hearts through this morning's message.

If it were possible, I think our church would be happy to start singing on page 1 & not stop until we had sung through the entire hymnbook!

@thompsrus and @chanthachhim treated my family to a very nice dinner tonight. Thank you both very much! We really enjoyed the fellowship.

August

2^nd

They never taught me in Bible college what to do when your son gets the offering bag stuck on his head 15 minutes before the service begins.

3^rd

Visited a family this morning with 5 kids: Neek, Nich, No, Noch, and Nut. More great Cambodian names here: http://www.themissionarymemo.blogspot.com/2010/06/lang-hang-sang-mang-and-chang.html …

Got 2 witness at length to a former Khmer Rouge soldier today. He is open 2 the Gospel & agreed 2 read the material I left him. Pray 4 Nee!

5^th

I led Karona to Christ 9 yrs ago. Karona led Sopia to Christ 3 yrs ago. Sopia led Srey Moch & Chiavay to Christ today! II Tim. 2:2 at work!

Gave out some awards to 30 church members today for quoting 2,125 verses while I was on furlough. 16 of them quoted all 100 on the list!

Especially proud of 5 of our young adult men. Last year they hardly tried & quoted almost no verses. This year between them they quoted 150!

7^th

I wonder if Cambodia is the only country where people trim their trees with a meat cleaver.

Enjoyed lunch today w/ my wife & the Phillips & our longtime friends, the Shulls. Thankful for godly examples and encouraging friendships!

11^th

Spent some time in the village today witnessing to a woman who is dying of cancer. Praying for God to convict her of her need for a Savior.

12^th

Good day in church yesterday. Loved seeing a man who had fallen and been restored beginning to experience the joy of the Lord once again.

14^th

2 people from PETA sat in a chicken coop in front of KFC today. All the Cambodians that gathered around were looking at them like "What...?"

I think PETA's message might be a tough sell in a country that transports live chickens hanging upside down from a motorcycle's handlebars.

15^th

Driving down the street today, I saw a new restaurant named Chuck Norris Dim Sum. I wasn't really hungry, but I was afraid not to eat there!

18^th

Driving to the village today I passed a guy in a wheelchair being towed by a rope tied to a motorcycle. I didn't ask how he planned 2 stop.

20^th

The Prime Minister's record-setting 5 hour speech from last week is now available on dvd! My kids are going to LOVE family night this week:)

22^nd

Spent several hours today making some great visits w/ @Chad_A_Phillips . We currently have a good list of prospects and it is growing daily!

Had a huge storm today which turned roads 2 rivers, cars 2 boats, motos 2 jetskis. It's fun but only until your "jetski" stalls "mid-river!"

24^th

We've had a major problem w/ our visas this week, and it has done nothing but grow in the past 24 hours. Please pray for a swift resolution.

Hoping to finish salvation studies with 3 different adults today. Please pray for Ohm, Bay, and Srey Laek to trust Christ as Savior today!

25^th

Thankful that Bay and Srey Laek (a dad and his adult daughter) both got saved this morning! Thanks to all who prayed for them.

26^th

6 visitors in church today! All of them were either co-workers, neighbors, or relatives of our church members. Looking forward to follow-up!

Leaving w/ family 2 drive 2 Vietnam border. Have 2 exit Cambodia then re-enter 2 solve visa problems. Please pray 4 a safe and smooth trip.

28^th

Just returned from Vietnam/Cambodia border. Trip took longer than planned, but praise the Lord our visa problems are now resolved!

Went 2 the cemetery tonight w/ a family 2 sing and read Scripture at the grave of their husband and dad who died while we were on furlough.

September

2^nd

Good day in church ystrday! 6 new adult visitors, several returning visitors from last week, and a couple of "wanderers" showed back up!

5^th

Just had the amazing privilege of leading my oldest son, Stephen, to Christ! He went to bed with a huge grin on his face! Thank you, Lord!

6^th

Witnessed again to a cancer-stricken woman in the village. Her health is failing quickly, and she still doesn't grasp her need for a Savior.

Sobering:"all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags...we all do fade as a leaf...our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."(Is.64:6)

Started a salvation study today w/ 3 teenagers, including the son of one of the ladies in our church! Please pray 4 Bee, Sopaek, and Sreyla.

9^th

I've been asking many 2 pray 4 the salvation of an elderly woman who has cancer. She finally got saved on Saturday! Thanks 2 all who prayed!

14^th

Witnessed to an elderly Buddhist nun today. She listened with interest until I told her that Jesus can wash away our sins. Then she got mad.

It's indescribably sad 2 see people who think that if they're going to be saved they'll have to do it themselves. It must break God's heart!

15^th

A man told me 2day that he saw Jesus crucified on a movie but didn't know why he had 2 die. What a joy 2 answer his question! Pray 4 Samien.

The woman who got saved last week was in tremendous pain from her cancer when we visited her today. Felt so helpless. Thankful for Heaven!

Wonderful morning in church today! New and returning visitors, solid crowd, great spirit, and two teen boys (Sopaek and Bee) got saved!

16^th

It was a joy to present two new Christians with their first Bibles in the service today!

One of the boys who got saved this a.m. took home our Gospel of John study booklet and had completed all 210 questions by the p.m. service!

17^th

Just told my boys we're getting haircuts this week. I asked my 6 yr-old if he wanted a buzz and my 3 yr-old chimed in, "Can I have a Woody?"

19^th

Was just informed that the woman w/ cancer out in the village no longer has cancer...she's in Heaven. So thankful she got saved 11 days ago.

20^th

Got to lead a 27 year-old man named Souv to Christ today. He visited our services last week and was very open to the Gospel. What a joy!

21^st

Went to the village today to see family and friends of the woman who died Wednesday. Got to witness some, and had a sweet time w/ believers.

23^rd

Had several more first-time adult visitors in church today, including a man I met yesterday on soulwinning. Visitors keep church exciting!

A teen boy who got saved last week was back in church today WITH his new Bible and a haircut and WITHOUT his earring.

Seems like almost every day I am hearing of yet another Baptist church starting in my home state! Could California be the new Bible Belt?!

25^th

“You cannot get a harvest if you are afraid of disturbing the soil, nor can you save souls if you never warn them of hell fire." -Spurgeon

26^th

My 3 yr-old son's comment regarding the black eye he got while playing today: "I like my black eye because it makes me look like a bad guy!"

Cambodia's Prime Minister, in a speech yesterday: "I have to clarify for the stupid man." He definitely knows how to get his point across:)

27^th

Reporter:"Why isn't there 24-hour traffic police?" High-ranking official: "It's not necessary. Between 10 pm and 6 am, people are sleeping."

28^th

Had an encouraging time w/ fellow missionaries at last night's English service. Bro. Ruppel preached a good message on the Goodness of God.

29^th

Asked a 12th grade young man in our church what he wants 2 do w/ his life. He said, "Get a job and follow God." That's a pretty good answer!

I told Seth (3) to go get a book for me to read to him before bed. He ran off excitedly and came back with "My First 1,000 Spanish Words."

30^th

Thankful for another good Sunday! One lady got saved and a young man I led to Christ years ago moved back to town and came back to church!

Cambodia has some awesome restaurant names, like this one I saw today: "Fate Blessing Buddha Vegetarian Restaurant!"

"Brother worker, are you getting a little weary? Never mind, rouse yourself, and plough on for the love of Jesus, and dying men." –Spurgeon

October

2^nd

While picking up my van from the shop today an employee asked, "Could I ask you a question about Jesus?" I love it when that happens!

Challenged by this verse today: "When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek." (Psalm 27:8)

"Of the 100's of spiritual failures I've counseled the thing they all had in common was an absence of the Word in their daily lives."-LaHaye

5^th

Had an encouraging time of prayer this morning w/ several fellow missionaries. I appreciate the godly friends God has given me in Cambodia.

"One second in Heaven should take care of anything we have put up with for our Lord." -Joseph Cannon

Rereading one of my favorite books:"For Missionaries Only" by Joseph Cannon. Reading this book is like getting encouraged by an old friend.

"If you want a short, unhappy stint on the mission field, then take a wife with you and neglect her." -Joseph Cannon

7^th

Heavy traffic around every Buddhist temple due to 2-wk Festival of the Dead. Hoping to someday see traffic jams around Cambodia's churches.

10^th

One of our newest converts is moving away tomorrow:( Glad we have discipleship materials to give him. He is very hungry for the Word of God!

13^th

Today begins the final 3 days of the Festival of the Dead. Happy to see the church full today of people who have found true hope in Christ!

@Chad_A_Phillips preached an outstanding message this morning! God met w/ us, and I believe many believers were strengthened in their faith.

14^th

Cambodia's former king Sihanouk dies in Beijing - Yahoo! News http://news.yahoo.com/cambodias-former-king-sihanouk-dies-beijing-001718306.html … via @YahooNews

18^th

King Sihanouk's body was returned to Cambodia yesterday. 1 million people lined the road from airport to palace to pay respects. Sobering.

A teen girl came to church tonight and asked for a bunch of tracts to hand out when she visits relatives in another province tomorrow.

19^th

After 2 weeks of a Buddhist festival and a relatively empty city, it sure was nice today to go soulwinning and actually find some people!

Samien told me 3 wks ago to come back after Pchum Bun Festival. True 2 his word, today he invited me in and let me begin sharing the Gospel.

21^st

We had 5 adult visitors in church today, 3 of whom were men I met while soulwinning. Praying for Samien, Ra, and Preeng to get saved.

"Lord, You have the strength and I have the weakness - let's team up!" -Vance Havner

All over town tonight people are excitedly staring at the moon where it is reported that the face of the recently deceased king can be seen.

24^th

Went soulwinning w/ @Chad_A_Phillips today. Most of the people we intended to visit weren't home, but we made several good NEW contacts!

25^th

In the wake of King Sihanouk's death I'm rereading the book "Cambodia: Report From A Stricken Land" by Henry Kamm. I highly recommend it.

Read today:"After the Pol Pot years, in which schools were abolished, only 300 Cambodians with a higher education were left in the country."

Reading Henry Kamm's '98 assessment of Cambodia (just 2 yrs before we arrived) sheds a lot of light on why some things are the way they are.

26^th

Translated "Apples 2 Apples" for a game night w/ our church tonight. They loved it!. Think I'll call my new Khmer version "Mangos 2 Mangos."

Today I introduced 2 of our church ladies to 2 ladies I met soulwinning this wk. They had a great visit & started a salvation study w/ them!

Thankful 4 the opportunity to witness at length to 2 men this a.m. Pray 4 Hak and Too. They expressed real interest, asked great questions.

28^th

Bittersweet day in church today. Great crowd, visitors, 1 saved, but had to say goodbye to the Phillips as this was their last day with us.

"Temporal things can't solve spiritual problems." -Chad Phillips

Last week I went down a wrong road while making visits. 4 people I met on that "wrong" road were in church this morning! God is in control!

31^st

Privileged to participate tonight in the ordination of one of the young men out of Rodney Ruppel's ministry. What an encouraging service!

November

1^st

Great to have a church member back tonight after working past 2 yrs as a maid in Malaysia. She soaked up every second of tonight's service!

Watching 4 children for some missionary friends while they go to Thailand for medical tests. We're now a family of 12 for the next few days!

2^nd

My wife recently learned to make homemade Fabreeze and 409 cleaner, and now she is making brown sugar from white sugar. Pretty resourceful!

4^th

Great day today in church! AM: 2 new Bibles presented, 3 returning visitors. Afternoon: 2 saved, 4 teen visitors, PM: 4 adult visitors.

In the Spring I don't really mind that we don't do time change in Cambodia, but in the Fall it makes me a little jealous.

6^th

Disappointment? Yes. Despair? No! God still holds the highest office of all. "Why art thou cast down? Hope thou in God." (Psalm 42:5)

8^th

Was asked ystrday to help someone learn a phrase in English. Expecting something important, the desired phrase was "You stepped on my foot"

Good crowd for Bible study last night. Taught on the 2 & 1/2 tribes who replaced God's will with their own. Lots of good application there.

You will always encounter forbidden land before you arrive at the Promised Land. Don't settle for less than God's best.

If this week's election will drive Christians to their knees like never before, then it will be a net gain for America.

9^th

12 years ago today our family arrived in Cambodia. So thankful for the privilege of being an ambassador for the Lord Jesus Christ!

Always encourages me 2 hear that a pastor just shared 1 of R letters w/ his church and I bet I'm not the only missionary who feels that way.

10^th

Only in Cambodia can you see a guy driving his moto down the road while simultaneously cooking waffles over the open fire in his sidecar.

13^th

My 3 yr. old is turning into a cynic! He's been walking around lately singing a song he made up: "Who Doesn't Care About The Muffin Man..."

16^th

Pray for 14 yr-old Bun Teem. He's been attending church 4 awhile, but today while visiting in his home he expressed interest in the Gospel.

17^th

The ASEAN summit starts tomorrow in Cambodia. Heads of state are arriving from all over Asia. Kind of exciting...despite the road closures!

President Obama is arriving here on Monday. This will be the first time ever that a sitting U.S. President has visited Cambodia.

18^th

Thankful 4 several teen boys who indicated their desire today 2 know how 2 B saved. Praying 4 open doors 2 share the Gospel w/ them this wk.

Never use the words or actions of lost people to justify ungodly behavior in your own life. God expects more from His own children.(Eph 4:1)

19^th

Air Force One touched down in Cambodia a couple of hours ago. Praying for Pres. Obama to have wisdom in his talks with other world leaders.

Seems kind of strange to think that Pres. Obama is staying just a few blocks from our house. We should have invited him over for dinner:)

I agree w/ Pres. Obama's admonition 2 Cambodia's Prime Minister re: human rights. I'm a little surprised he went there, but I'm glad he did.

20^th

Discovered a new definition 4 the word "futile": trying to get a 3 yr-old boy to take a nap while a helicopter repeatedly circles your house

Proud of my 3 older girls (Candace, Deborah, and Emma) for working hard this afternoon doing some deep cleaning @ the church. They owned it!

True...Obama & Clinton looked sleepy @ ASEAN summit, but honestly, I felt bad for them. Jet lag + extreme humidity + long speeches = brutal!

"If you think Independence Day is America's defining holiday, think again. Thanksgiving deserves that title hands down." -Tony Snow

21^st

What a thrill to see 100 people (3 churches) crammed into our church last night singing heartily to the Lord & testifying of God's goodness!

22^nd

Had a nice Thanksgiving Day with 3 other missionary families. 27 people in our little house! So thankful for God's unending goodness to us!

23^rd

Murphy's Soulwinning Law: A man who is uninterested will live in the same house for 100 years. A man who IS interested is moving next week.

26^th

Over 100 precious souls perished in a fire in a garment factory in Bangladesh yesterday. I wonder how many of them were ready to die.

27^th

My 4 yr-old daughter, Gabby, while eating breakfast this morning: "Mmmm...these eggs taste like eggs!"

28^th

Reading "Today's Gospel - Authentic or Synthetic" by Walter Chantry. The part I've read so far has been excellent.

"Do you declare in your witnessing that God is holy? Every part of your message rests upon the character of God." -Chantry

"If you rush into four easy steps to heaven with a man who has a defective view of God, you will deceive him and yourself." -Chantry

"In the twentieth century the church has tried to see how little it could say and still get converts." –Chantry

Finished "Today's Gospel" this morning. Disagreed with some things in the 2nd half of the book, but nevertheless, a thought-provoking read.

29^th

Started a salvation study with 14 yr-old Bopata today. He has no parents. Lives with his aunt. Praying he will soon have a Heavenly Father.

Sokia visited our church Sunday and loved it so much she was back again tonight and brought her two teen brothers, Tonglang and Seehua!

30^th

Last month I gave my barber an evangelistic booklet-The Fun Train. When I went to get a haircut today, that was all he wanted to talk about!

December

1^st

Heartbreaking visit this evening. 6 teen & young adult siblings wanting 2 come 2 church & hear about Christ, but dad said a very adamant NO!

2^nd

Overheard a guy tonight whispering to his friend about my kids: "Wow! They speak great English!" Not sure what he was expecting:)

4^th

Had a great time last night with missionary friends watching our kids perform "A Christian Christmas Carol." They did awesome!

7^th

Transparency International released their annual report on corruption yesterday, and Cambodia ranked 157th out of 176 countries.

In today's paper: a new report on "land grabbing" around the world highlights two countries as prime examples...Mozambique and Cambodia.

9^th

A visitor from 2 wks ago came back today w/ 5 friends! One of our ladies began a salvation study w/ all 6 of them during the preaching time.

Two week in a row, tragic deaths in the NFL. I wonder if those who cried out against guns last week will cry out against alcohol this week.

13^th

Good day! Continued a salvation study with Bopata, started one with Bunteem and his mom, Paek, and got a promise from Makara to start one!

While I was teaching @ a house today, a rat was feasting boldly & sumptuously on bread left at an altar a few feet away. A bit distracting:)

16^th

Had 90 kids in services ystrday & today. Many of them were visitors and heard the story of Christ's birth for the first time in their lives.

18^th

Finished "In The President's Secret Service" by Kessler. Learned a lot about the character of our 10 most recent presidents. Some surprises.

19^th

Read ystrday that the cremation ceremony for Cambodia's late king will cost $5 million. Today that was changed to $1.2 mil. Either way, wow!

Got to start a salvation study today with 2 brothers named Piarine (12) and Piarong (16) who have been coming to our church.

We have a sandwich shop here called Fatboys. Problem is...they answer their phone with broken English: "Hello, fat boy, may I help you?"

20^th

Ystrday a man in R chrch w/ an unexpected day off came by 2 wash van, fix broken light. 1 of the all-time best ways 2 encourage your pastor!

23^rd

Thankful for a full house at church this morning and great participation by our people in our annual Christmas offering for others.

Thoroughly enjoyed our annual Christmas concert tonight! Great crowd, beautiful music, and spirit-filled preaching by Bro. Rodney Ruppel.

Just finished "Stories Behind The Best-Loved Songs Of Christmas" by Ace Collins. Very interesting! Here's a summary: http://themissionarymemo.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-stories-behind-songs.html …

25^th

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us." Hard to believe, but I'm sure glad it's true! Merry Christmas!

My 3 yr-old son opened a plush Buzz Lightyear today, then he opened a cool light-up sword w/ sound effects and immediately executed Buzz.

Had @knvbc playing the entire day today in our home. Every song was perfect!

26^th

Legos, coloring, Monopoly, Mad Gab, Apple to Apples, Miracle on 34th St, junk food. Wow...sometimes relaxing tires me out more than working!

27^th

Piers Morgan says the Bible is "inherently flawed." The Bible says Piers Morgan is inherently flawed. I think I'll stick with the Bible.

28^th

I'm thankful for General Schwarzkopf's life of service to our nation. We need more men like him! I pray that he knew the Lord.

“Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without strategy.” Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf

30^th

Thankful to end the year w/ a great day! Nearly 70 in attendance this morning, 2 saved, 10 baptized, and many visitors!

One of our church members brought 8 of her fellow university students to church today. None of them had ever heard the Gospel.

"Resolution One: I will live for God. Resolution Two: If no one else does, I still will." -Jonathan Edwards

31^st

"New Year's Resolution: To tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time." -James Agate

"An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves." -Bill Vaughan

On Being An Effective Messenger

2012-12-31T02:24:00.001-08:00

In the Bible, although angels were used by God for a variety of purposes, the primary use was to deliver a message. In fact, the very word "angel" means "messenger." Webster's 1828 Dictionary further defines an angel as "one employed to communicate news or information from one person to another at a distance." Angels played a huge role in the story of Christ's birth, delivering messages from God to Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, and likely to the wise men. But it is the angel's message to the shepherds that has struck me as being very similar to the part that we believers have been asked to play in God's master plan of redemption. Just as God dispatched an angel with a specific message for a specific group of people on a Bethlehem hillside, God has dispatched us with a specific message for a specific group of people. We have been commissioned to bear the Gospel to a lost and dying world.

The problem is, some messengers, while their heart may be in the right place, are extremely ineffective. A few days ago one of the men in our church told me about a "messenger" he saw walking the streets near a busy market. The man, a foreigner, was carrying a megaphone, and his message consisted of two words and one dramatic hand motion. First he would say (into the megaphone) "Jesus." Then he would slowly extend his arm and point up to the sky. Then he would speak another word into the megaphone, "Heaven." He walked all around the market repeating this phrase and hand motion again and again, and saying nothing else. According to my friend, half the people were amused and the other half of the people were confused. And no wonder! Regardless of the sincerity of the man, he was an ineffective messenger.

Every once in awhile in the Bible we see an extremely effective messenger. Jonah, for example. He preached for 3 days and a whole city repented of their sins and cried out to God to be saved! The angel that announced Christ's birth to the shepherds can certainly be counted in the number of extremely effective messengers. Think about it - in Luke 2:8, the shepherds were going about their everyday lives. They were following their normal routine. They were "abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flock." Seven verses later (and these events undoubtedly transpired in just a few moments of time) they were aroused from their routine and seeking Christ "with haste." I don't know about you, but that's the kind of response I would like to see when I deliver a message from God. Not only did the shepherds immediately respond with positive interest to the angel's message, but a very short time later, they themselves had become messengers of that same message!

While our church choir might not be able to fly in formation over the local high school football game singing selections from the Christmas cantata, we can learn something about the effective delivery of a message by examining 3 components of the angel's message.

1. Our Message Must Include Joy

Luke 2:10 - "And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people."

We can never expect the lost world to be attracted to a Gospel delivered by grouches! The first thing the angel wanted the shepherds to know was that he had some really good news for them. When sharing our faith, the motto of every Christian should be "good tidings of great joy!" Yes, of course, there is some bad news that we must tell people in order to show them their need for Christ, but we should always approach the Gospel with a smile. After all, when an inexhaustible supply of a 100% effective cure for a dreaded world-wide disease is made freely available to all mankind, that is good news indeed!

Smile when you go soulwinning. We are not in a contest to see how many people we can offend with our gruff ways. And smile when you're not soulwinning. In other words, when going about your daily life - at the grocery store, at work, at a Little League game - be a person with a quick smile, a joyful song, and an easy laugh. There is nothing like genuine joy to attract a person to you. And attracting a person to the messenger is the first step to getting him to hear the message.

2. Our Message Must Include Truth

Luke 2:11 - "For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."

Joy is an important part of being an effective witness, but we can't get so wrapped up in being Mr. Nice Guy that we fail to fully impart the truth of the Gospel. The truth that is contained in the Gospel cannot be compromised or watered down to placate the hearer. The angel "shot straight" with the shepherds. Notice three very important truths found in this brief pronouncement:

"unto you"

The message of salvation is not only available to every man, it is imperative to every man. Jesus came to this earth to die on the cross for you. The Gospel must be personalized for every man. It is not just good for some. It is indeed the only hope for every man.

"a Saviour"

Most religions don't even claim to provide a Savior. They have their gods that must be appeased. They have their prophets that tell you what makes their gods mad. They have their teachers that tell you how to be good so the gods don't get mad. They have their priests that will help you get out of trouble (for a price) if the gods do get mad. It's pretty futile and hopeless when you stop and think about it. The One True God knows that people are sinners. But instead of commanding us to fix the problem ourselves, He sent His Son to be our substitute on the cross.

"Christ the Lord"

The angel didn't just tell the shepherds that there is a Savior...he named that Savior. Can you imagine how ineffective his announcement would have been had he said, "A Savior is born...and he is whoever you want him to be." No, he left no room for multiculturalism, religious adaptations, or private interpretation. A Savior is born, and it is Christ!

3. Our Message Must Include Instructions

Luke 2:12 - "And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger."

Oftentimes new Christians struggle with this part. They have both the joy of the Lord that so often characterizes new believers and an adequate grasp of the truth of the Word of God; however, after sharing the Gospel with a friend or loved one, they don't know what to do next. Many analogies could be used here. They don't know how to "draw the net." They don't know how to "reel it in." They don't know how to "bring it in for a landing." And sadly, without instructions, a person who is interested in the Gospel can oftentimes be left hanging. I have had people tell me that they heard the Gospel presented in the church they attended as a child, but there was never any invitation or instructions extended to them.

While we cannot do the convicting work of the Holy Spirit, we must be prepared to give instructions to one who has heard the message and wishes to respond. The angel did not say, "If they are the real-deal, they'll find the baby on their own." No, the angel told them the steps to take if they decided to respond to his announcement. He told them how to find the baby. After we have shared the Gospel with a person, we should share instructions whereby they might place their faith in Christ. While there are numerous Scriptures that can be used, Romans 10:13 is a great place to start!

I thank God that He has not only give us a message to deliver, but has also given us good examples of how to be an effective messenger.

Deliver God's good news with a happy face.
Deliver God's simple truth without compromise.
Deliver God's life-changing Gospel with instructions for the seeker.

Not every person will gladly receive God's message, but these three principles will help us to be a more effective messenger for God.

The Stories Behind The Songs

2012-12-23T22:35:00.001-08:00

This morning I finished reading "Stories Behind The Best-Loved Songs Of Christmas" by Ace Collins. Many Christmas songs have a way of evoking emotion and deep feeling in our hearts, and it was interesting to learn how they came to be. There are many good stories in this book that are quite detailed and lengthy, and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is interested in this type of thing. I thought it would be fun to share a few brief stories that I found to be either particularly intriguing or humorous.

"O Holy Night"

The words to "O Holy Night" were written by a French Catholic poet who later left Catholicism and joined the socialist movement. The music was written by a man who didn't even believe in Christ...a Jew. When the political and religious "persuasions" of the two writers came to light, the song was officially denounced by the Catholic church, but it was so well-loved by that time that many continued to sing it. About 50 years later in 1906, Reginald Fessenden, former chief chemist for Thomas Edison, broadcast the human voice over radio airwaves for the very first time in history. His first words were the reading of the Christmas story from Luke 2. Then he played a song on his violin. The first song ever broadcast over the airwaves - "O Holy Night!"

"Silver Bells"

Jay Livington and Ray Evans were tasked with writing the music for "The Lemon Drop Kid" starring Bob Hope. They discussed how most Christmas songs were about scenes of tranquility, but for this song, they needed something that captured the hustle and bustle of Christmas in a big city. While having a brainstorming session about the music, one of them was playing with a little bell, which eventually inspired the song. Before sharing it with Bob Hope, they sang it for Evan's wife, who giggled and laughed throughout the whole song. She said she liked it except for one word...they had begun the song "Tinker bell, tinker bell, it's Christmas time in the city." They changed "tinker" to "silver" and had an instant classic. Interestingly, this same writing team wrote many other classics like "Mona Lisa" and "Que Sera Sera" and...are you ready for this? The theme song from Mr. Ed.

"O Little Town Of Bethlehem"

This song was written by Phillip Brooks, an Episcopalian minister who spoke at President Lincoln's funeral. After enduring several difficult years of ministry (due at least partially to the stresses of the Civil War), Brooks took a sabbatical to the Holy Land. On Christmas Eve, 1865, he borrowed a horse and rode out alone through the hills around Bethlehem. It was there under the star-filled sky that God impressed some thoughts upon his heart which later took the form of a poem. Several years later, the organist in his church labored at length to write a melody, but he came up with nothing. He awoke from sleep later that night with the tune we now know as "O Little Town Of Bethlehem" playing in his mind.

"The Christmas Song"

"The Christmas Song" was written on a very hot California day in July. Lyricist Robert Wells was trying to cool himself off with fans and positive thinking, so he jotted down a list of things that made him think of cold weather. "Chestnuts roasting...Jack Frost nipping...Yuletide carols...folks dressed up like Eskimos." Wells' songwriting partner, Mel Torme, caught a glimpse of his list setting on the piano and instantly it hit him as lyrics. 40 minutes later, the two men had written "The Christmas Song."

"Do You Hear What I Hear?"

"Do You Hear What I Hear?" was written, unbelievably, by a husband and wife team whose first names were Gloria and Noel. Gloria and Noel...get it? Noel Regney wrote the words, and then asked his wife, Gloria Shayne, to write the music. After she read through the lyrics, she went shopping. The first line of the song came to her in Bloomingdale's. When she returned home, she found that she had added an extra note in her tune, causing it to no longer fit her husband's lyrics...which is why one should probably compose music sitting in front of a piano rather than walking through the mall:) Noel decided to add a word so he wouldn't mess up Gloria's melody. Had she not added that extra note, instead of "Said the night wind to the little lamb" it would have been "Said the wind to the little lamb." So I guess composing music while shopping turned out okay after all!

"Jingle Bells"

"Jingle Bells" was originally written as a Thanksgiving song. In 1840, the pastor of the Unitarian church in Medford, Massachusetts, asked his son, the church organist, to write some special music for their Thanksgiving service. When the melody came to him, he had to walk through the snow to the home of Mrs. Waterman as she owned the only piano in Medford. The song was such a hit on Thanksgiving, that the choir was asked to sing it again at Christmas. Many of the visitors on Christmas Sunday loved the song so much that they took it back home to their own communities. Since they first heard it on Christmas, they taught it to their friend and families as a Christmas song.

"The 12 Days Of Christmas"

In the 16th century, all denominations and sects of Christianity were outlawed in Great Britain except for the Church of England. One of the biggest difficulties that non-Anglicans faced was in teaching their own doctrines to their children when they were allowed no freedom of religion. Allegedly, English Catholics came up with "The 12 Days Of Christmas" as a kind of code to teach their children. It was meant to be nonsensical to those who weren't "in on the secret" but full of meaning for those who were. Each of the gifts in the song, along with its corresponding number is said to have theological significance. For example, 4 calling birds represent the writers of the 4 Gospels. Some of them (most of them) seem to me to be a stretch, but what do I know? I'm a Baptist:)

"If King George Possessed Your Hearts"

2012-10-10T08:04:00.001-07:00

I recently read the book "Marion And His Men" written by John De Morgan in 1802. It is the story of American Revolutionary War hero Francis Marion, who was also known as "The Swamp Fox." Marion both made his mark on the Revolutionary War and earned his moniker by his fighting tactics. He and his band of men were too outnumbered to launch a full-scale attack on the British forces, so instead they dwelt in the swamps of the Carolinas and employed guerilla warfare tactics to buy more time for General Washington. The opening line of one of the last chapters tells the whole story in one line: "Day after day Marion and his men so thoroughly harassed the enemy that Lord Cornwallis was put to his wits' end to circumvent the Americans."

Near the end of the book there is an account of a conversation that took place between Marion and a British officer who had been brought blindfolded into their encampment to work out the details of a prisoner exchange. When the meeting was over and the British officer was preparing to leave, Marion insisted that he eat a meal with them. The man was famished (the British were on limited rations as well as the Americans) so he accepted the offer. He assumed, as did many, that the patriots were living off the fat of the land; thus he was disappointed to see that their entire dinner would consist of some roasted potatoes. The patriot's cook pulled a potato from the fire, blew off the ashes, and offered it to the British officer on a piece of bark for a plate. The man tried to eat the potato, but without butter or salt he found it to be tasteless and sat the bark plate down. The conversation that ensued gives us a glimpse into why the patriot's fought, but more importantly, it provides a standard by which we might measure our fervency as soldiers of the Lord.

First the British officer commented that he didn't know how long the British soldiers would keep fighting if their government gave them only plain potatoes. Then, assuming he had figured out the secret, the British officer said that surely the patriots must be well-paid, to which Marion replied, "Not a cent, sir. Not a cent." The British officer was obviously at a loss to explain their devotion to their cause, and he burst out, "By jove! how do you stand it?"

Marion: "It is a matter of principle, sir."

British Officer: "Principle be hanged! Do you think King George could get men to do all the fighting and not draw any pay, and get nothing to eat but potatoes? I'll be hanged if he could."

Marion: "Why sir, the heart is all. If King George possessed your hearts, you would fight cheerfully even on a potato diet."

British Officer: "No, no, General Marion, that I must deny."

Marion: "When a man is interested he will do and suffer anything. Many a youth would think it hard to be indentured at a trade for fourteen years. But let him be overhead and ears in love with such a beauteous sweetheart as Rachel, and he will think no more of fourteen years' servitude than did Jacob. That is just my case. I am in love."

British Officer: "You in love, general?"

Marion: "Yes, I am in love, and I have the most beautiful sweetheart; her name is Liberty. Be that beauteous nymph my companion and these wilds and woods have charms beyond London or Paris in slavery. To have no proud monarch driving over me with his gilt coaches; nor his host of excise men and tax gatherers insulting and robbing me; but to be my own master, my own prince and sovereign, gloriously preserving my national dignity, and pursuing my true happiness; planting my vineyards and eating the luscious fruits, sowing my fields and reaping the golden grain; and seeing millions of brothers all around me, equally free and happy as myself. This, sir, is what I long and fight for. And when I look forward, sir, to the long ages of posterity, I glory in the thought that I am fighting their battles. The children of distant generations may never hear my name, but still it gladdens my heart to think that I am contending for their freedom, and all its countless blessings."

Allegedly, after the war this British officer bought an estate in Carolina and married an American. And who can blame him after being given such an eloquent case for freedom!

America's forefathers were driven by the greatest motivator of all - love! When a person is in love, they will endure anything. The American patriot's love of liberty was a noble one, but how much greater should be our love for the Lord Jesus Christ! I was struck by Marion's comment that "If King George possessed your hearts, you would fight cheerfully even on a potato diet." And if King Jesus possesses our hearts, we will serve Him cheerfully and faithfully, no matter the cost.

The Worth Of A Soul

2012-09-19T20:45:00.001-07:00

"For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matthew 16:26) The implication of this verse is quite stunning really. You may gain all of the wealth, riches, and treasure that this world has to offer, but if in doing so you lose your soul, then you ultimately are the loser. That is the worth of a soul to one's self. But what about the worth of a soul to God? The soul of a man is worth enough to God that He was willing to give His most precious possession, His only begotten Son, in order to redeem that soul from Hell. The worth that God places upon a soul is undeniable and undebatable. But what about the worth of a soul to you and me? I mean, how much is it really worth to us in terms of time, effort, and money to see that a soul has had every chance to not only hear the Gospel, but come to Christ?

It is one o'clock in the morning, and I can't sleep. I received word tonight that a cancer-stricken woman out in the village where we have a weekly ministry just passed into eternity. I am happy that 11 days ago she placed her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, and I am thankful that her pain and suffering are now over. Several of us visited her this past Saturday while we out in the village, and she was in horrible pain. Since then our prayer has been specifically that God would just take her home quickly, and I am relieved in my spirit that tonight He did just that.

As I meditate upon this precious soul who has passed into eternity tonight, little memories keep popping into my mind. Little things that perhaps seemed insignificant at the time, but now in hindsight I believe they played a huge role in bringing this woman to Christ. Although I have known her for about nine years, I am unsure of her name. It is very common here in Cambodia to call someone by a familial title and not their actual name. I call her Ohm (an older aunt). Here are ten factors that I believe ultimately contributed to the salvation of Ohm's precious and valuable soul. Perhaps these thoughts will encourage someone to keep sowing the seed, keep watering the seed, and not be weary in well doing.

1. Our Village Ministry

Nine years ago I made my first trip to the neighboring villages of Prey P'douw and Chomka Chun because two men I had led to Christ in Phnom Penh asked me to go to their villages and share the Gospel with their friends. We've had many ups and downs in this village ministry. We have seen many people saved from those and other nearby villages, but we have also faced many discouraging and trying times. In fact, I am ashamed when I think of just how many times I have asked myself, "Is it really worth driving out here every Saturday?" But at this particular moment, I am more glad than ever that we started this ministry. A woman is in Heaven tonight because of it.

2. Our Children's Ministry

Over the years, our children's ministry has provided a link to many homes in several villages. Many of the adults have never expressed interest in knowing more about Christ; however, they have seen the love and investment that we have showed to their children, and I think that counts for something. When we first started the children's ministry, Ohm's youngest son got saved and was a very faithful attendee. He has since grown up and moved away, but in recent years her grandchildren have been faithfully attending. I can't prove this, but I have a strong suspicion that all of the years of building up trust through our children's ministry played a part in this woman's listening to the Gospel in her hour of need.

3. Special Days

There may have been a few other times, but the only time that I know for sure that Ohm came to one of our services was one year when we had a special service to honor all the mothers. We had a good turnout that day. Many of the teens and children stood and publicly declared their love and gratitude for their mothers, each mother was given a small gift, and the Gospel was preached. While she did not get saved until many years later, she heard the Gospel that day and also was given Gospel literature.

4. Faithfulness In Trials

A few years after starting the ministry in the village, our 22 month-old daughter, Faith, was unexpectedly taken home to Heaven. I remember one day after we had returned to Cambodia I was walking down the trail to the place where we hold our services and Ohm came out of her house and called me over. She wanted to ask how Faith had died and how our family was doing. Anyone who knows Cambodian culture will know that for her to ask about how our family was holding up was extremely unusual, as Cambodians almost never get into deep conversations regarding matters of the heart. I was totally taken back by that brief conversation, but I was thankful to have had the opportunity to tell her of the grace of God and the hope of Heaven. I had the distinct impression that she was impressed - not with me, but with our faith.

5. Love

About five years passed. Her son grew up and moved away. One of her older sons gave her some young grandkids to raise, and they began to faithfully attend our services. We saw her often while coming and going, but she never really opened up to the Gospel. Then her whole life changed when, less than a year ago, she was diagnosed with cancer. I was in the states on furlough, and Bro. Chad Phillips was covering our ministry in my absence. Not only did Bro. Phillips not have a history with this woman, but he didn't even know some of the history that I did have with her. All he knew was that the grandma of some of our faithful little children was ill and needing encouragement, prayer, and most importantly, the Gospel. He began to visit her often after he concluded the children's service. He witnessed to her, but she still wasn't ready to be saved. The biggest thing he did though was to display Christ's love to her. It is interesting to note that in the 6 years I have known Bro. Phillips, the verse I have most often heard him reference as a verse that has greatly impacted him personally is I John 4:17 which says, "...as he is, so are we in this world." Bro. Phillips takes this verse seriously and it helped to bring Ohm to Christ.

6. Compassion
Our church in Phnom Penh has an annual Christmas tradition of taking a food offering on Christmas Sunday morning which is then distributed to needy families. The goal is always to find some non-church families who are in great need (not a hard quest in Cambodia) and use the food items to show God's love to them. Most years the offering will be divided among numerous families. This past year, however, the Lord laid it on Bro. Phillip's heart to give the entire offering to Ohm since in addition to her newly diagnosed cancer, she was also raising four young grandchildren with no help from anyone. That offering made a huge impact on her. Although she was yet unsaved, she knew that the folks in our church had sacrificially and voluntarily given a large amount of food to help meet her needs.

7. The Word of God
At this point in the timeline, I returned from my furlough and began to visit her weekly. Her health was failing quickly, but her heart had opened up considerably to the Gospel due to all of the previous seeds planted over the years. I spent several consecutive weeks carefully teaching her the Gospel, and she listened with great interest. After I completed my presentation of the Gospel, it became evident that she believed much of what God's Word said regarding Jesus Christ; however, she was unwilling to place herself in the category of "sinner." Of course, the Bible teaches clearly that a person cannot be saved until they first admit they are not saved. I remember going home that day thinking, "Now what?" But of course, the Bible tells us that "...faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." (Romans 10:17) Over the next several visits I determined to simply get more of the seed of God's Word planted into her heart. I read to her of the proud Pharisee and the humble publican, and which one of the two went away justified. I read from Isaiah 64 about how God sees our attempts at righteousness. I read to her of Heaven and of Hell. I read to her about the Lamb's Book of Life. Praise the Lord, the incorruptible seed of the Word of God took root and began to grow.

8. Prayer
Of course, we made Ohm a major matter of daily prayer. I know that several distant relatives of hers (who are also members of our church) were praying faithfully for her. Bro. Phillips and I were both praying for her. We asked the entire church to pray for her. I asked hundreds of people who receive my email updates to pray for her. I requested prayer for her on Twitter. I believe that there were many people praying for her, and thankfully, God hears and answers prayer!

9. Testimonies
The last two times I visited her before her salvation, I asked 3 different men in our church (2 of whom are related to Ohm) to come with me and tell her about how they first realized that they could not get to Heaven by depending upon themselves. These three men gave unbelievably good, strong, passionate testimonies of how God had brought them to a place of understanding, repentance, and faith in Christ. I saw her listen to all three of them with great interest, and shortly after hearing the last one testify, she expressed that she now could see that her only hope of Heaven was in the person of Jesus Christ!

10. Teamwork
The way the Lord used so many people to impact Ohm was truly a beautiful thing. Some witnessed, some prayed, some helped meet a physical need, some shared their testimony...and God gave the increase. (I Corinthians 3:6)

What is the worth of a soul?
It's worth our time.
It's worth our labor.
It's worth our money.
It's worth getting involved.
It's worth caring and loving.
It's worth an extra trip.
It's worth getting home late.
It's worth any perceived inconvenience.
It's worth laboring in prayer.
It's worth meeting someone's temporal need.
It's worth enduring adversity.
In a word - it's worth everything.

Help Us Choose A Furlough Vehicle

2011-10-28T13:03:00.000-07:00

We've spent the first several weeks of our furlough looking for a vehicle to purchase. After chasing down numerous leads and driving lots of miles in borrowed vehicles (thanks to generous relatives and friends), it appears that our search is over. We have found a van that will meet our needs and hope to pick it up within a few days. Meanwhile, while downloading some pictures from our camera the other day, I had to laugh at how many vehicles I have taken a picture of this past month. I guess that's to be expected with vehicles "on the brain." So since we haven't given the van owner any money yet, I thought perhaps I should take a poll and see which vehicle you think we should get. After looking through my pictures, here are my five favorites:

Last week, I stepped out of our hotel room one morning to go and preach a Christian school chapel. I saw this limo waiting outside the hotel. I laughed inside and said, "Well, bless their hearts...look what they sent to fetch me."

The Hummer Limo

Then I looked directly in front of the limo and laughed even harder at what was parked in front of it (pictured below).

The Camper

We also recently saw a really cool army dune buggy parked in front of a military surplus store. This vehicle gets my son's vote.

The Dune Buggy

We went out to Ironwood Christian Camp to check out a vehicle and came across this one which might work.

The Stagecoach

But if we want to save the planet, maybe we should go with this people-powered vehicle!

The Hotel Trolley

Which one gets your vote?

Introducing A New Book

2011-08-29T07:24:00.000-07:00

I have finished my book on the subject of Christian growth, and it is heading to the printer. In this blog post I want to share the story of why I wrote the book and also tell a little bit about the content of the book. For those of you who use twitter, you can get daily quotes from the book and information about the book by following @morethanasavior. More Than Just A Savior will be available this Fall.

(The following is an excerpt from the Preface of More Than Just A Savior)

The idea for this book began two and a half years ago as I was preparing to teach a Bible study to a small group of men in our church in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. My topic for the four-week study was to be “Men and Relationships,” and I was going to teach the first week on “A Man’s Relationship With God.”

Having been preaching and teaching for years, I had taught many times on that topic, even to some of those very men. But I began to pray and ask God for a new way to present the same old truth – that we need to walk with God. As I studied, read, and prayed, I kept going back and forth between several angles. Did I want to focus on our sonship? Did I want to base this lesson on the Good Shepherd?

Then a thought occurred to me: “I wonder how many different illustrations or analogies there are for a Christian and his relationship with God?” As I began to count them, suddenly I knew that my angle for the upcoming lessons would be that our relationship with God has multiple angles. I ended up teaching the men an abbreviated version of all ten of the relationships, just highlighting each one briefly and whetting their appetites for future study. A very excited young man approached me after the Bible study and said, “I’ve never heard anything like what you taught tonight. That was so easy to understand. I think I actually get it!” He had been saved for a few years, but just had not caught on to the whole concept of having a real and ongoing relationship with God. A couple of the other men also expressed similar sentiments.

When I got home that night I was meditating further on the lesson, when another thought occurred to me: Several of these relationships lead effortlessly and naturally into various Christian disciplines like church attendance, Bible reading, and prayer. I wondered if all ten of the relationships could be connected to the topics that are generally taught in a new converts class. I went down to my office and got an armload of various discipleship manuals off the shelf and begin comparing tables of contents, making a list of which topics are typically covered with new Christians. Even though the books themselves were different, the topics covered were pretty much the same: assurance, Bible, prayer, church, giving, soulwinning, trials, surrender, service, separation, standards, etc. Like putting together a simple puzzle, in about ten minutes I had seen that there was a very clear and natural connection between these ten relationships and the habits and disciplines that should be a part of every Christian’s life.

I was excited! I called my friend, Rodney Ruppel, and shared my thoughts with him. He caught my excitement right away! The reason we both got excited was because we both were pastoring groups of relatively young believers who wanted to do right but didn’t always see the point of certain activities. For example, in the past I would say, “Now that you are saved, you need to come to church.” And sometimes their honest reply was, “Why?” I felt as if I had made a breakthrough in how I could teach new converts about the Christian life. If they could first be taught about their multifaceted relationship with God, then all of the “do’s-and-don’ts” would fall into place much more naturally.

I immediately began the task of studying and writing about each of the ten relationships in detail. As I finished them I began to share them with some of my family members and friends in the ministry. It was at this time that several people started encouraging me to print this material in English as well as Khmer. One missionary said to me, “I wish I had read this when I was a new Christian." Another missionary said, “I sent your material to my parents in America. They are each discipling a young Christian, and I think it would be a big help to them.” Then another missionary said, “I met a lady on the airplane who was really struggling with some spiritual issues. I talked to her on the flight, and then when I got home I emailed your material to her.”

I used this material in our Sunday School classes at Good News Baptist Church in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and we saw tremendous growth in many of our people during that time. Several other churches in Cambodia, the US, and even a couple of other countries have also used the material with good results and we are happy to now present this book with the hope that it will be a help to many more.

In Their Own Words - 2008 Video

2011-08-01T08:25:00.000-07:00

This is the video that we showed to half of our supporting churches back in 2008. The churches that we did not visit in 2008 have not seen this, so I decided to post it on my blog. Although it is several years old, I praise God that the great majority of the faces you will see in this video are still coming to church, growing in grace, and serving the Lord!

We are right now working on our 2011 video which we will show in churches later this year. When our furlough comes to a close, I will post that video for our supporters who we do not get to see this time around. I also intend to post our 2005 video very soon.

Emma Playing The Offertory

2011-08-01T04:17:00.000-07:00

Here is Emma Grace Benefield (9 years old) playing "Fairest Lord Jesus" at our church last week. After a year with no piano teacher, it is good to see the girls back into weekly lessons, even if it is just for a couple of months. I'm proud of Emma and all of her hard work on the piano.

Tally Ho The Fox, by Herb Hodges (Book Review)

2011-07-27T01:58:00.000-07:00

There is no shortage today of books on missions, and I have certainly read my share. Aside from individual missionary biographies, there are three books that I have read in recent years which stand out in my mind as some of the most challenging books I have ever read. I recently reviewed "Nothing To Win But The World", and now I would like to review another one of this trio of outstanding books, "Tally Ho The Fox".

The author is Herb Hodges, a long-time pastor and evangelist. His main premise in the book is that modern-day churches are failing miserably to obey the Great Commission. One of the things I like most about this book is not so much that he says new things (although there are certainly some fresh ideas in the book) but the fact that he says things we already know in such a straightforward and powerful way that you cannot help but be challenged and convicted. He uses outstanding illustrations (many of which I had never heard), and he also has a sharp wit, a dry sense of humor, and a very effective use of sarcasm.

To see the main premise of the book and his engaging style, one must only read a few sentences into the introduction.

"...the typical church (in America) is jammed with "pew potatoes" whose only intent is to come to church, listen to a sermon, and go away, hoping that this course will help to privately smuggle their souls to heaven and help them to have a reasonably comfortable life on the way. Any resemblance between this lifestyle and the Christian life pictured in the New Testament is purely coincidental."

The book opens with an excellent chapter on vision. He analyzes the concept of vision from every angle and presents a compelling case that the reason we are failing to fulfill the Great Commission is because we fail to see the world and our God-give task through God's eyes.

"Why do church members get much more excited about a thousand other things than about God, spiritual things, heaven, hell, and eternity? The answer? No vision, thus no motivation, because motivation arises out of vision."

And I love this quote from Dawson Trotman:

"Vision is getting on your heart what God has on His."

The next couple of chapters present a unique and detailed dissection of the methods, scope, and participants of the Great Commission. He breaks the Great Commission down into 7 parts (as an added bonus, much of this material is wonderfully alliterated), and in each part he shows not only God's plan (the Savior's strategy) but also how Satan attempts to mess it up (Satan's substitute). Here are several excellent quotes from Hodges' section on the Great Commission.

Regarding total participation: "When the church won its greatest victories in the early days of the Roman Empire, it did so not by teachers or preachers or apostles, but by amateur, informal missionaries."

Regarding God's command to reach out with the Gospel (as opposed to just opening our doors and expect the people to come to us): "Satan is a master manipulator and twister of words. He induced a slow perversion in the Church from "go and tell" to "come and hear."

Regarding the inward focus of many churches: "We have developed a kind of "holy huddle" inside the Church. The team never seems to get "into the trenches" at the line of scrimmage, where the game must be played if victory is to be the result. And some like the coziness and safety of this arrangement. After all, did you ever hear of a football player getting hurt in the huddle?"

After presenting his case for total involvement and total commitment to the Great Commission, Hodges then spends the rest of the book exhorting the reader to be equally involved and committed to investing in new believers, so that they too might give their lives fully to the cause.

In order to make the transition from evangelization to discipleship, he highlights the biblical author, Luke. Hodges asserts that Luke's authorship of the books of Luke and Acts are the key to understanding how God intended for believers to win the world. He says that the Gospel of Luke is essentially a Gospel tract written by Luke for the express purpose of leading his intellectual and educated friend, Theophilus, to the Lord. Acts was then written by Luke to teach the young convert to do his part in impacting the world for Christ. Some of the evidence that he cited was merely circumstantial in my opinion, and certainly not airtight; nevertheless, the whole concept was very thought-provoking and worthy of consideration. Without a doubt, he raises many excellent points regarding the necessity of investing time (both quality and quality) into the training of the ones we lead to Christ.

As with most books, there were some things in Tally Ho The Fox that I didn't agree with. Oftentimes, I let those issues go when reviewing a book or when telling someone about the book; however, this time I feel compelled to bring up two philosophical problems that I had with this book since I have praised the book highly. I simply want to be clear to those who read my review and those who may read this book based upon my recommendation that I do not hold to these positions.

1. He used a couple of illustrations in the book that de-emphasized the importance and validity of preaching.

For example, he said that preaching is like taking a bucket of water and throwing it at a bunch of small-mouth milk bottles that are twenty feet away. He claims that "the efficiency of such a technique is fairly predictable: not much water will get into the bottles. And even if it does, it will evaporate in time if there is not a practical purpose for its use. Disciple-making by comparison, is like taking the bucket of water to each milk bottle and pouring the water into it until the bottle is full. There is little question where the greater efficiency lies."

I believe that preaching is one of God's most highly sanctioned methods (if not the highest) for delivering his Word to mankind. While I don't see any evidence in this book that Hodges believes the following, there are many in our modern times who do indeed believe that preaching is an ineffective and outdated tool. But why does one have to be put down for the other to be commended? There is no reason that preaching and one-on-one discipleship cannot take place in tandem. They are not (at least they should not be) in competition, but should complement each other. My suspicion is that Hodges would agree (because he did speak highly of preaching in other places in the book), but the apparent denigration of the effectiveness of preaching in these illustrations was offsetting to me.

2. He used an illustration which sounded much like the modern-day notion that the majority of missionaries should be sent to the fields that are yielding the most fruit.

He asked the reader to imagine a scenario where a farmer had three orchards which yielded varying amounts of fruit. Field A could be harvested at the rate of five bushels an hour. Field B took five hours to harvest one bushel. And Field C could not be harvested at all, because the fruit was not yet ripe. If the farmer had 30 workers, according to Hodges, he would send 29 to Field A and send one worker to Field B to do whatever he could. The one worker in field B would also be given the responsibility of keeping his eye on Field C and letting the farmer know when the fruit was ripe.

Rather than addressing this line of reasoning in this book review, I will write a later blog post about why I disagree with it strongly.

Over all, I give this book an A+ for its content, readability, and fresh approach to an old topic. I was incredibly challenged by Mr. Hodges' intensity and obvious love for the Lord. His book is available for $7.95 here. Also, he provides free downloads of the book in Chinese, German, French, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Swahili. By the way, if you were wondering about the title, read the book! He explains the title in the final chapter of the book, and it is an awesome illustration!

I conclude this book review with a great statement from an equally great book.

"At the North Pole there is a huge cap of ice on which the snow keeps building up. Scientists tell us that if it were ever to melt much of the world would be covered with water. Laymen might be called "God's frozen assets." If they were all melted before God and warmed to His vision, His purpose, His goal, His strategy, "the earth would be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea."

Thoughts From A Funeral

2011-07-16T18:08:00.000-07:00

Nobody likes funerals, but I went to a funeral recently which really blessed my heart. Pastor Sakaun is a national pastor here in Cambodia who was led to Christ about 12 years ago by my good friend, Missionary Rodney Ruppel. You can read a bit of Pastor Sakaun's testimony here.

A couple of weeks ago Pastor Sakaun called me and told me that he had just gotten word that his mother had passed away. Of course, I felt sorrow for his loss, but even more so because his pastor (Bro. Ruppel) had just left for the United States for furlough and was not there to encourage him. He told me that the funeral would be the next day, which was a Saturday. I decided to take a van load of our church folks to the funeral to try to encourage this sweet family, and several things really challenged me.

The first thing that moved my heart occurred before we even arrived at the funeral. We had directions to the village, but did not know how to get to the specific house. I had been told to call when we got to the front edge of the village and someone would come out and lead us to the house. Usually it is not hard to find a funeral or wedding in a small village, because of the portable tent that is set up in the road for the event and the monks chanting over a very loud speaker. As this was a Christian funeral, we knew we wouldn't hear the chanting monks, but I thought perhaps we would see the tent. As we pulled up to the village we noticed the area was thick with trees; thus, we did not see the funeral tent. I pulled to the side of the road to call and ask where to go, and suddenly I heard a beautiful sound wafting through the village - the song "I Need Thee Every Hour"! I turned around and looked at our church people and smiled. "I guess we don't need to call after all." We followed the song straight to the funeral!

The second thing that caught my attention was the sermon. Pastor Sakaun had led his mother to Christ several years previously, and now on the occasion of her funeral he was preaching his heart out to the friends, family, and neighbors who had gathered. His sermon was one of the best I have ever heard at a funeral. He preached with incredible clarity and passion. He was preaching comfort to the many Christians who had gathered, but there was a lot more to it than that. He was also declaring God's truth to the many relatives and neighbors who were listening around the edges of the tent and from nearby houses. Due to the loudspeaker up in the tree (which is a staple of all Cambodian weddings and funerals) he was also declaring God's truth to the entire village. He preached about Christ and the cross, sin and salvation, Heaven and Hell. And when the death of a loved one turned the spotlight upon him (as it so often does), he explained to the onlookers exactly why a Christian has hope in their time of distress. Among the many good things that he said were these three Bible-based principles about death:

1. For the Christian, death is sleep.

2. For the Christian, death is gain.

3. For the Christian, death is going to be with Jesus.

As I sat listening to him preach, I was so thankful for the missionary family who had cared enough to reach out to this man's family years ago. Bro. and Mrs. Ruppel left for furlough just a couple of weeks before this funeral, but this man and others have been so well-trained that they were able to put together a challenging and comforting funeral and preach God's Word with love and compassion.

The final thing I want to share about this funeral is the stark contrast between Buddhism and Christianity that was so clearly displayed at this funeral. Many of the family members of the deceased are not Christians. After Pastor Sakaun's mother passed, he and his siblings sat down and worked out a plan: Sakaun wanted to have a Christian funeral for his Christian mother, and the other siblings wanted to have the traditional Buddhist funeral since that is their custom. Pastor Sakaun told them that he would have a Christian funeral in the early afternoon and after that they could do what they wanted. When we went to the funeral, all of the Buddhist components had already been prepared for the ceremony that would be held later that day. Colorful murals depicting scenes from the life of Buddha had been hung on the walls of the tent. While Pastor Sakaun was preaching, standing in front of those murals, it was almost like an object lesson of the comparison between simple faith in an unseen God and complicated faith in a religious system. Outside of the tent was the customary structure where the casket was to be placed for cremation. When a person dies in a Buddhist family, they rent one of these 15 or 20 foot-tall structures which looks kind of like a boxy pyramid with lots of colorful flags and decorations all over it. After the service, Pastor Sakaun and I stood over by that structure talking and we began to discuss the main difference between the two funerals: the Buddhist funeral is all about the body, while the Christian funeral is all about the soul and spirit.

I praise God for the hope that we have in Christ! And I thank God for the many people in Cambodia who have found this new hope!

Nothing To Win But The World, by Clay Cooper (Book Review)

2011-07-11T02:01:00.000-07:00

There is no shortage today of books on missions, and I have certainly read my share. Aside from individual missionary biographies, there are three books that I have read in recent years which stand out in my mind as some of the most challenging books I have ever read. I would like to review each of these three books in subsequent posts. I will begin with "Nothing To Win But The World".

"Nothing To Win But The World" was written by Clay Cooper in 1965. Mr. Cooper was the founder of a non-profit fundraising group for missions called Vision, Inc. This book has a very distinctive flavor because of the era in which it was written. Two major issues from the 1960's are heavily referenced throughout the book: the Space Race and the Cold War. Mr. Cooper correctly concluded that Communism was not only an enemy to the political systems of the free world, but that it was also an enemy to Christianity. Consequently, although the topic of this book is the spreading of the Gospel, he made multiple references to the evils of Communism.

While the book is not overly political in nature, there are definitely some fascinating political overtones, particularly in the foreword and the preface. The foreword was a very strong call for all Christians to rededicate themselves to the spreading of the Gospel, and it was written by then-governor of the State of Oregon, Mark Hatfield!

Even more interesting is the preface of the book which is an excerpt from the United States Congressional Record of the 86th Congress. On February 11th, 1959, Walt Horan, apparently a state representative, read an article by Clay Cooper in his speech before the House of Representatives. The title of the article by Clay Cooper was "Missions or Missiles - This World or the Moon". In his article, Mr. Cooper suggested that perhaps the Communists were getting the U.S. sidetracked with a race for the moon while the Communists ultimate goal was to win the world. Here are a few excerpts from his article (and remember - this was read on the floor of the United States House of Representatives a mere 50 years ago).

"Bear in mind it is not something we shoot from earth into the heavens that is going to save the world. Rather it is that Someone who came down from heaven to earth one starlit night in the long ago."

"As a symbol of hope, the fiery launching pad pales in comparison with Bethlehem's manger."

"It is cause for amazement to many thinking people that a nominally Christian society should frantically compete with avowed atheists in the moon-race. Let the Reds be first to reach unknown worlds. Let the known world with its known peoples and their known problems be our first concern. Why bankrupt the nation so as to plant the Stars and Stripes on the pock-marked Sea of Tranquility? The Blood-Stained Banner has yet to be lifted over more than half of terra firma!"

"Shall we major in missiles and minor in missions? Shall we invest trillions for one and trifles for the other? Shall we put a man on the moon or a missionary in Martinique? Shall we waken, too late, and realize that while we were trying to gain the moon we lost the earth?"

And that's just the preface! Now you see why he entitled the book, "Nothing To Win But The World".

I love the author's idea for the main text of the book. There are 27 chapters in the book. Does that number ring a bell? It is the number of books in the New Testament. Every chapter of this book is a truth about world-wide evangelization based upon a verse from a different book in the New Testament.

For example:

Chapter 1 is drawn from Matthew 25:25 ("And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth...") and makes the case that fear hinders the spreading of the Gospel more than any other single thing.

Chapter 2 is based upon Mark 6:7 ("And he called unto him the twelve and began to send them forth..."). This chapter presents a very strong argument that too many men have let women lead the way in the cause of missions, when it is actually men whom God has always used to advance the Gospel.

In Chapter 3 he compares the sending forth of the disciples to the launching of a rocket, taking his text from Luke 24:49 ("...but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.")

Chapter after chapter he follows this same pattern of pulling out one verse or passage from each subsequent book of the New Testament and using that verse to challenge the reader to do more for the cause of Christ. He covers every major topic related to missions including racial prejudice, financing missions, the importance of prayer, only one way to Heaven, what a world without Christ would be like, the chain-reaction of missions, missions logistics, love, and many other topics.

While the illustrations used in this book are largely outdated, the truths contained therein certainly are not. Any Christian would benefit greatly from reading this book. Unfortunately it is out of print, but there are some used copies available on various websites. Get it. Read it. It will light a fire in your soul.

That's Forgiveness

2011-06-28T09:16:00.000-07:00

On Sunday nights I am preaching verse by verse through the book of Ephesians. Recently I preached from verse 7 about forgiveness of sin. While trying to come up with a good illustration of Biblical forgiveness, God brought a memory to my mind of something I had seen a couple of years ago here in Cambodia. This illustration is about an old train that looks kind of like the one pictured above.

Over the past 20 years, many families (most of them poverty-stricken) have built small houses and shacks along each side of the tracks where the train slowly rumbles through our city. When I say along the tracks, I mean that literally. In many of the houses you can stand in the front door and touch the train as it passes. The railways in Cambodia are in a state of great disrepair, but still the train (an engine pulling a few cars) comes through these neighborhoods periodically. Sometimes it comes several times in one week, and other times it may be a couple of weeks between trains. People have ropes and awnings strung across the tracks where they have set up small market stalls, makeshift restaurants, and laundry lines, and they have to move those things out of the way if a train comes through. When they hear the train coming, they usually have about 2 minutes or so to clear the tracks.

One of the first times I visited a family along the tracks, I was inside witnessing and we kept hearing the whistle blowing over and over as it approached. The incessant blowing of the horn seemed a little over the top to me until the neighbors outside started shouting for the owner of the red moto to move it out of the way. It was mine! I had parked it on the side of the house where I was visiting, but it was sticking out a bit into the path of the train.

One day I led a one-armed man to Christ. Most people in Cambodia who are missing a limb lost it to a land mine, but this man told me that when he was a teenager he was asleep on the tracks and didn't wake up in time to move. Many of the young people who live along these tracks have lived there all of their lives.

While out soulwinning with some of our church people one day, I saw something that made me (and the others) laugh long and loud. While waiting for our last soulwinning group to come to the van, the train came slowly down the track. Like always, there were young boys jumping on and off the train and having a great time, but it was something else that caught my eye that day. Along the side of the engine, where lots of bars and bolts stuck out in various places, hung a plastic bag filled with garbage and neatly tied at the top. Someone in one of the houses had decided that the easiest and quickest way to get rid of their garbage was to hang it on the train as it went by. They probably didn't have any idea where the train was ultimately going or when it would stop. They just knew they wanted their garbage to go away.

One of the definitions of the word "forgive" is "to send away" and "forgiveness of sin" is one of the numerous spiritual blessings that Christ has provided for all believers (Ephesians 1:7). When God forgives sin, he sends it away (Psalm 103:12). He takes that smelly bag of garbage, hooks it on the train of God's grace, and it disappears into the distance never to return. When I ask God to forgive me for some wrong that I have done, I really don't know where that sin goes. I just know I don't want it anymore. God takes it and disposes of it somewhere in the depths of the sea where no one will ever find it again (Micah 7:19). And once sin has taken the journey on the grace train, it's gone forever (Hebrews 10:17). It's really pretty amazing when you think about it.

Sadly, we humans aren't nearly as good at forgiveness as God is. Oftentimes we forgive only in a guarded and begrudging way. It's kind of like part forgiveness/part probation. We figure we can forgive today, but if it suits our purposes, we can always bring the offense back up tomorrow. But forgiveness means "to send away". Many of our relationships would be greatly strengthened if we would learn to "send offenses away". It doesn't even require the other person to ask for our forgiveness for us to simply decide that this garbage (the anger, the bitterness, the resentment) needs to go. Most of us probably are familiar with Ephesians 4:32, "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." But there is also a very important truth found in the preceding verse, "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:" If we keep the bag of garbage in our house (instead of sending it away), it just makes our own house stink.

Is there someone you need to forgive today? Have you been storing up hurts and offenses in your heart? Are they starting to fester and ferment? I hear God's Grace Train coming down the track. Hang your garbage on the train and send it away.