Jesus' example of grace allows people to live!

Social vs. anti-social

Two of the extremes that a ministry (and a missionary) can fall into are the social gospel and what I call the anti-social gospel.  The social gospel is a common term to describe those who only do humanitarian work without telling people the good news of salvation.  This is not our philosophy, because we believe that when God doesn't get the credit, then man or Satan does.  We don't want to take credit for our good works, like hosting Children's Day at the hospital (see pictures on this page and on the picture page).  Instead, we want to acknowledge Jesus Christ as the Source of this love.  We do this by constantly recognizing the Lord and His message.  Yet, we don't want to go to the other extreme and practice the anti-social gospel.   Our philosophy is a bit different than and unacceptable to ye old-tyme missionary, but we are looking for approval from God, not them.

I have a lot of respect for missionaries going to the ends of the earth to bring the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ to people who have never heard.  It is essential to create fellowships of believers who have an affinity for each other to stir each other up to grow.

However, there are some missionaries dedicated to planting churches of their own disciples because they don't accept or get along with other groups of believers.  We believe in living a life of grace and lovingly letting others live lives as God lets them--free to choose.  Thus, we are more accepting of the traditional and non-denominational groups.  This irks some people, including the ministry with which we recently broke ties.  Many don't include most of Christianity in their circle of the saved.  Much of each man's philosophy is influenced by his past and I was born when Time magazine's Man of the Year was Pope John XXIII who started a "revolution in Christianity", stressing reconciliation and forgiveness, embracing all Christian faiths.  (See Bawer B.  "The Other Sixties." Wilson Quarterly Spring 2004, p. 80)  

The world needs a deep grace not superficial political correctness.

"Who is wise and understanding among you?  By his good life let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom.  But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts do not boast and be false to the truth.  This wisdom is not such as comes from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish.  For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.  But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, without uncertainty or insincerity.  And the harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." James 3:17-18

None of us are strangers to disorganization and vile practices.  We, as Christians are called to meekness.  A great example is Paul when he was asked who he was.  He didn't say he was nobody, but he said that he was a voice crying in the wilderness.  From the Old Testament, that was somebody!  But he recognized his gift and mission and he stuck to them.  He had no selfish aspirations that let him flower-up his speech, but he lost his head for speaking out about the ruler's sin.  In modern terms, he "burned his bridge."  So many high and mighty in religious groups today are worried about burning Satan's bridges and will compromise the truth for their selfish ambition.  That will get us promoted to success in the world, but we are called to God's success.

As Jesus wasn't a mind-numbing niceguy, but confronted evil while extending grace to the needy.  Likewise, Aurelia and I strive to be leaders in the extending this kind of grace toward all in the Body.  We tend to be more accepting as far as doctrine on minor issues, because God doesn't seem to us to indicate doctrine as a determinate factor in discerning believers from unbelievers.  But, we are uncompromising when it comes to applying Scripture to reconcile and correct.  From our website work, I am in a dialog with a man who seems to have discarded virtually all the conventional Christians, even saying, "We DO NOT see Billy Graham, as a preacher of the gospel."(emphasis his)  The person believes that water baptism is anti-Christian.  It promises to be an interesting dialog.  Our team does not desire to associate with people that will damage God's reputation or work.  This became more important this year as we intensified our work with Italians who are tired of religion and phariseeism they see around them.  We recently had our advisory team go through the Matthew 18 reconcilliation process with our former agency over several issues.  Being unsuccessful, our team switched to Least of These International Ministries.

None of us are strangers to disorganization and vile practices.  We, as Christians are called to meekness.  A great example is Paul when he was asked who he was.  He didn't say he was nobody, but he said that he was a voice crying in the wilderness.  From the Old Testament, that was somebody!  But he recognized his gift and mission and he stuck to them.  He had no selfish aspirations that let him flower-up his speech, but he lost his head for speaking out about the ruler's sin.  In modern terms, he "burned his bridge."  So many high and mighty in religious groups today are worried about burning Satan's bridges and will compromise the truth for their selfish ambition.  That will get us promoted to success in the world, but we are called to God's success.

Some people who live the antisocial gospel become accusatory and judgmental, with words and behavior that inflame and instigate.  The victim of their consternation may be as ethical as retired FBI agents, but if the missionary doesn't have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, disagreement with his ideas will cause him to assassinate the person's character.  That is why we encourage are training churches selecting missionaries to focus on character instead of knowledge.

"I've got a new attitude!"

That 70's disco song could be a theme of our life and work.  Internet acquaintances of mine, the Bates family, wrote:

'An opinion poll by the Institute for Social Studies revealed the following in response to the question, "How do Romanians become wealthy?":  Almost 50% said by breaking the law, while 29% said that being well-connected was how Romanians prospered.  Only 9% believed work and personal merit brought personal wealth, while another 9% said luck had something to do with it.  These views of success become self-fulfilling prophecies.  The publication of this survey gave way to a raging debate in the media about whether it is possible to be "successful and honest" in Romania.'

Satan has a strong grip on Romania, dragging it further into poverty.  A Romanian's purchasing power is a fraction what it was under Communism and 84% responded to a Gallup Poll that they would prefer a harsh leader with absolute control of Romania (dictatorship?).  

The fruit of the Spirit is definitely not being felt in Romania.  They voted themselves the unhappiest people in the world.  Consider that Nigerians believe themselves the happiest and you will see that the quest for material (a.k.a. materialism), not lack of materiel (a.k.a. poverty) is the cause.  Scripture says the "love of money is the root of all evil." (I Timothy 6:10)  The World Values Survey confirms that unhappiness is not caused by poverty but by preoccupation with what one does not have.  (Source:  BBC News)  This can be a good lesson for any culture, but it seems most needed in Romania where we have been teaching it.  Again, perhaps it is easier for Europeans to preach this message because they seem to pursue wealth less than Americans, working shorter hours, spending more time with family, receiving less pay and, if suicide data is any indicator, being happier.

"And everyone that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a hundred fold and shall inherit eternal life."   Matthew 29:29

Many people seem to use this verse as referring to rewards in Heaven.  I'm not an expert in picking this verse apart, so I won't be making the following idea a central doctrine.  However, just by the grammatical order, it seems to be describing earthly rewards.  If I had been the author and I wanted to get across the message of Heavenly prizes, I would write "shall inherit eternal life where you will receive a hundred fold."  As it is written it seems like eternal life was an afterthought.  

Aurelia and I would surely welcome the other interpretation, having given up upper 5-figures to live at poverty level, but God has made this verse true in our lives right now!  We have the chance to stay in many different houses as we travel, hosted by friends instead of staring at the walls of Fairfield Inns--not that finances give us a choice!  We have grieved the forsaking of brother, sisters, father and mother, being unable to frequently see them and participate in their lives.  Much as it hurt, I was unable to visit my Uncle Dave on his deathbead this month.  On the other hand, we have literally reaped a hundred-fold, a "family" that has gone through spiritual battle together, making it tighter than most biological or spiritual families.  

Coming alive!

"Do not ask yourself what the world needs.  Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive."---John Eldredge. Wild at Heart Field Manual (p. 250.)

Here, Eldredge seems to speak directly to me.  One of my favorite bosses was Dave Jeffery.  His policy was to find what made a person come alive--his God-given talents and to build the job around him.  Compare that to a recent experience where my new boss didn't even care to look at the analysis made of my gifting.  He had a job that needed to be done and he would make the person fit the job.  He had admitted to me that there were a lot of risks to my coming to Germany and he didn't see the sense of it.  DJ had much more leadership experience.   Moving to Germany put Aurelia and me in a place where God can use our gifting for His glory, but it took our being wild at heart, trusting that God had what it took to meet the evident risks.  I am starting to understand what Eldredge and our pre-marriage counselor meant by encouraging us to pursue God's vision for our lives instead of following after the safe, corporate vision of doing what the world, ministry, or company needs.  I am finally feeling that I am coming alive.  

Attending a recent Wild at Heart conference with the soldiers was like waking up from a long sleep.  In many ways it was a real eye-opener.  Just being married and thinking of having kids, I thought of Aurelia and me as pretty young and peers with others at the same stage in life.  I felt like I had returned from another planet, not knowing any of the movies in discussion and not having any pets or hobbies.  Yet, Aurelia and I felt like we had come home and instantly we had more friends than in Romania.  Those on our support team were right.  This is exactly what we needed and Satan couldn't thwart God's plans.

New opportunities to come alive have Aurelia and I in much better spirits.  Without scientific data to support this, I would contend that in addition to satisfaction with what you have, the ability to achieve your potential based on your God-given talents and interests is an important ingredient of happiness.  This is something that is newly realized in our lives.  As such, our literature program continues to grow.  With over 200 visitors a day to our websites, we are able to influence many more people than if I were only preaching to a house-church.  Publishing articles in Romania, Hungary, and the US, we can reach many people outside our small town.  Colaboring with Casa Biblica, we have our hands in a nerve center for God's work in the Veneto region.  Personally and professionally, I'm getting much satisfaction from getting involved in Toastmasters, the Boy Scouts, and proofreading medical articles for publication.  Aurelia enjoys the culture, preparing our house and hosting social events, and participating in the Christian assembly we have found nearby.  None of these things would have been possible with our former alliances.  God's greatness doesn't depend on our faithfulness to Him, but He gives useven more joy and productivity when we obey His leading! 

As you can see, our work continues to be very fruitful.  Although I'm still usually working late into the night, restful periods dot my schedule.  Learning to speak German and to play the guitar are on my daily academic schedule.  I'm doing more painting and drawing, since these activities (plus the guitar) help me relax and since pictures seem to minister to people and attract them to our website.  We are getting health issues addressed.  In Munich and Vicenza, I am getting a lot of social time with peers and the Wild at Heart weekend gave me more revelations into God's character.  There is no shortage of items to write about and to teach.  A magazine has asked for more articles on child development.  This is a year of casting many seeds but since March all seem to have fallen on good soil.  

Please pray for the following:

• I can prepare to lead a missions conference in Italy in October.  I need to translate my lessons or have them translated.
• For our literature ministry.
• For our trip in August to work with the children of Romania.
  

Interested in our work? me at