A Visit To The Party Table

Yesterday I e-mailed the syllabus for the classes that I will begin teaching on July 25 for evaluation. Sending them made me think about teachers who impacted my life. The Lord has given me the opportunity to be taught by great men and women of God. But one professor from Bible College stands out in my mind. If my teaching style can closely resemble that of any teacher I have ever had it will definitely imitate his.

He was a passionate teacher who showed great amounts of emotion while teaching. He was also one of the colleges most demanding professors. The exams in his classes where one of the few that could not be passed by frantically studying for a few nights. To get a good grade you literally would have to think through a book of the Bible, and sometimes more than one! But what makes him so special to me is something he didn't do in class.

It was during my Sophomore year in college when I took his class. I had a lot of friends, and enjoyed spending time with them every day. So every day we would all spend about an hour eating lunch. Actually we were some of the first ones to get there, and the last to be thrown out. Very little of that time was spent actually eating of course. We would tell stories, laugh at stupid jokes, and just have a good time. Not surprisingly we were very loud while this was going on. After a few weeks our lunch table became what was known as “the party table”.

Normally the professors would eat with other faculty and staff. That was why I was so surprised when the passionate demanding professor walked towards the party table. I was shocked when he asked if he could sit down and eat lunch with us. No professor had ever done that before! We let him sit down, and before long he was laughing at our jokes and sharing his own stories. In the weeks that passed I noticed that he almost always sat with the students. Before long students actually started coming to him when they needed advice. A lot of his lunches turned into counseling sessions. But that didn't seem to matter to him.

When my class graduated we asked him to give the commencement address. We did it because he was not just a professor, but a close friend. He took a risk and became actively involved in our lives. And by doing that he became a mentor instead of a professor. God has given me an incredible opportunity to teach doctrinal truth to Australian nationals. And I am looking forward to teaching them how to practically apply those truths. But I am praying that God would allow me to do more than just that. I want to find, and minister to the needs of their hearts. For what good is it to fill a mind with doctrine while the heart is broken?

No Longer Alone

One of my biggest frustrations in the first months of ministry is the lack of strong relationships with missionaries and Australians. I am the kind of person who loves to be around people and a social life is very important to me. I expected to make many friends when I came to the country in January. But by late March that had not taken place. As the weeks and months passed my irritation over not having close friends became discouragement. That discouragement came to a head one night after dinner. For almost an hour I voiced my frustrations about lack of friendships to the missionaries who I had been staying with. I asked them why God did not give me friends and mentors to help in my ministry. Their answer was that I should wait for God to develop those relationships.

A few Sundays later I began a month long internship at a local church in the area. Following the service he took me out to lunch and I spent the afternoon at his house. While watching sports on television we talked about the burden and vision that God has placed upon our hearts for ministry. Later we laughed and shared stories over cups of coffee. That night I excitedly told the short term missionary who was staying with me at my house about what had happened. After more than three months I was finally beginning to develop close relationships with other believers!

For the last four weeks I have been involved in an internship at another local baptist church. Two of the missionaries who minister there as pastors were used by God in my life. Specifically they were a source of Godly council and advice. When I encountered a very stressful situation in my ministry their help was greatly appreciated. If it had not been for their timely advice I would not have been able to calmly deal with the crisis I faced.

These two men have also been used by God as a source of encouragement. Whether it is by calling me at home just to make sure that I am okay, or asking how I am really doing, they have taken it upon themselves to help me. That does not mean I don’t struggle with hard decisions and stressful situations. But it does mean I have Godly mentors who I can come to in that time of need.

Another pastor in the area has taken me under his wing as well. He is one of the greatest encouragers I have ever seen. Every time I see him he makes sure that I know how much he appreciates me. He has sent a message to my phone on more than one occasion to just let me know that I am doing a good job. I will never forget the night he took myself and my short term missionary friend out to get coffee after church on a Wednesday evening. The coffee is not what I remember but instead I remember the interest he showed in me. And that interest was an incredible source of encouragement to me.

These four men are just a few of the many close friends, mentors, and encouragers that God has given to me in the last two months. One of my biggest fears when I came to Australia was the loneliness that I would experience. I knew that Satan would take me through periods of loneliness. I also knew that without close friends, mentors, and encouragers I would not survive. That is why these relationships I have developed are so important to me. There are still days when I am forced to walk the valley of loneliness, but I thank God that I don’t have to walk it alone.

Worth the Price

I am a dreamer. My day dreams when I was young were different from those of other children. Mine included elaborate stories that created imaginary worlds. I would think about those worlds for hours on end, only to continue the story the next day. As a teenager I loved to write and dreamed of writing a book. As a college student I dreamed of graduating with honors. While taking my Masters degree I dreamed of becoming a leader with strong management skills. During four years of deputation I dreamed of developing of discipling college and high school students. I dreamed of developing a small group’s ministry as well.

Those dreams along with countless others were never realized. And they all failed for the same reason. I was not willing to pay the price to see that dream fulfilled. It is possible that the God did not want me to see any of those dreams become a reality. Sometimes he does not allow us to pursue those dreams in our hearts because it is not the right time. But even if those dreams are not God’s will for our lives he still desires us to pursue them. The only thing that should keep us from pursuing those dreams is God closing the door.

God many times places dream in our hearts and challenges us to pursue them. But those dreams always come with a very high price. You must study while others are having fun in order to graduate with honors. You must exhibit strong discipline, self confidence, and develop your strengths in order to become a strong leader. You must study the Word of God intensely in order to truly disciple others. And most times when faced with the high price of our dreams we all quit.

God has placed in my heart a vision for what he wants to happen in the field of Australia. A vision for a ministry that takes new believers, and gradually develops them into spiritually mature disciples of Christ. I know that God desires for me to pursue this vision or “dream” that he has placed upon my heart. I also know that I will have to pay a very high price in order to see that dream realized.

I guess it all comes down to one question. Is seeing this dream realized worth the price I have to pay? And of course the answer to that question is a very strong yes! I have a long journey ahead of me as I pursue this dream of my heart. But one thing is for sure. By God’s grace I will pay whatever price needs to be paid in order to fulfill his vision for my ministry. That means I will probably endure years of pain, suffering, loneliness, discouragement, and frustration. But it also means that I will be able to see God take the dream he placed in my heart and make it a reality. And that is well worth ten to twenty years of suffering.

One Passion

Recently I began to read books that would prepare me for my teaching ministry in late July. I decided to focus on leadership books because I found the subject interesting, and they would help me develop important leadership qualities. There countless books on leadership today. Go to a local Christian bookstore and you will find an entire shelf of them. That’s why it was very interesting that one principle seemed to be repeated in all of the books that I read.

The principle was worded in different ways but the truth is the same. Successful leaders do a few things, and do them well. One book in particular challenges the reader to find the one passion or calling that God had given to them. Once that passion is found they are to focus all of their energy on doing that one thing with excellence. This truth goes totally against what I thought about being a leader.

I always viewed a successful leader as one who could do anything and everything with excellence. Because of that a lot of my focus would be on what I viewed as weaknesses. I felt that in order to be a strong leader I would have to develop those weak points into strengths. But as a result of my reading I see that is not true at all. Actually it will hurt my ministry because I will be doing a number of things in an average way instead of a few things with excellence.

So many people think that they can’t do a great work for God because of their weaknesses. But we each have a calling from God. He has placed within each of our hearts a passion to do a specific work, and given us the talents needed to accomplish that work. And those who find that passion and develop it will be successful in his eyes.

In case you can’t tell my passion is for youth. Specifically my calling is to disciple young people so that they can become spiritually mature. Because of that I have committed myself to focus whole heartedly on that one thing. For me to become involved in administration would be foolish because God has gifted me for work with youth. That is not to mean that I should refuse to do anything but youth work. But instead that I will make God’s calling my main focus.

It is a wonderful thing to realize that we can all be mightily used by God. We just need to dig up, cultivate, and develop the calling he has for our lives. I can guarantee you that working with youth will not make me a lot of money. I will not become world famous or be written about in a magazine. But I will have a happiness and peace that the rich or famous will not know. I will be able to pour my whole life into the calling of God for my life. And in the eyes of God I will be successful.

Facing a Crisis with Confidence

Six months ago I boarded a plane in Charlotte North Carolina and began the long trip to Australia. I felt I was prepared for the spiritual warfare and attacks that I would receive from Satan while on the field. But just six days after arriving here I was totally discouraged. While that discouragement did not last it made me understand that I wasn’t as prepared as I thought. It was not loneliness or homesickness that discouraged me. It was the crisis situations that I faced the moment I got to Australia.

For me a crisis is a serious problem that can’t be fixed on your own power. Actually the crisis situations weren’t the actual problem. My response to them was what caused all of the trouble. Most times I would try to “ignore” the crisis thinking that if I procrastinated long enough it would go away. This is one of the most popular responses in times of need, but rarely if ever works. All I would end up with was a bigger crisis that would have to faced later. Realizing this was not going to fix my problems I decided to try another approach.

My second response is also a very popular one. I would simply try to take care of the problem myself. This tactic would not do much better than the first one because I didn’t have the strength to handle those needs myself. Sometimes I could handle a crisis on my own, but the emotional stress that it put on me wasn’t worth it. I knew that there had to be a better way to respond.

God did show me a better response to crisis situations, but it scared me almost as much as my needs. The response was to ask others for help when I face a crisis. This scared me because like many men I viewed asking for help as weakness. After a few months on the field I faced the choice of being viewed as weak, or dealing with problems on my own. Knowing that dealing with needs on my own would lead to discouragement and stress I chose to be viewed as weak.

I began to share with close friends and other missionaries what I was struggling with while on the field. I also constantly asked my family for advice using skype. The most amazing thing happened after I began doing that. I was not viewed as a person who was weak. Instead the people who I asked for help actually respected me more! God used those conversations to develop close friendships.

In the last month I have faced more crisis situations than ever before. It honesty feels like I face a new one each day. But I don’t run from them or act like they don’t affect me. Instead I face them with courage. But that courage does not come from my strength. It comes from the fact that I have an army of friends and family standing behind me. It is because of their prayers and encouragement as well as God’s strength that I am able to face crisis situations with confidence.