That All May Know Ministries Blog

Tonight was a memorable night, one I will never forget. The Lord allowed 2 great blessings in my life. I was able to administer my first ever baptism and I was also able to baptize my own son. On top of that, it was our first baptism in our infant ministry.  There will be many more baptisms in our ministry but I will never forget this one.

We thank Missionary Marvin Robertson who allowed us to use his baptistery. My father-in law preached and gave a clear message on Salvation and Baptism, explaining that Baptism is not a requirement for salvation but instead, a step of obedience in following the Lord. Later, I had the privilege of baptizing Isabel and my son Aaron.

You can watch the video of the Baptism below.

It is hard to believe that 2009 is almost finished. The year has flown by and so many things have changed around us. With the world economy in focus, a new president inaugurated, tremendous job loss and unemployment data, the death of some famous icons, as well as secrets being unveiled about others, there is always something on the news that changes life as we now it forever. However, as Christians we understand that there is one constant thing in life that we can have comfort in...that our Lord Jesus Christ loves us and is always there for us. The truth that we serve a loving God who would send His only Son to die for you and me is a truth that will forever set us free and give us hope in an ever ailing world. God has a message of hope for the nations that we must deliver to them. There are so many in this world who have no hope.

Our desire is to deliver this "hope" to the people of Spain. We are gearing up for our big "push" that will begin at the start of the new year. In January, we will begin the journey of delivering the Gospel on DVD to 18,500 households. With an average of 3 people per household, approximately 55,500 people will have the chance to watch a very simple, clear, straight forward Gospel Message on their TV or Computer.

The DVD's have been duplicated and are ready. We have been fixing up the building trying to get it ready before we start delivering the DVD's. We are hoping that through the Gospel on DVD project, english classes, and other means of making contacts we will build a core group of people. Once we have this core group of people, we will then hold our inauguration service as a church. That is our plan for now. Pray with us as we try to make a dynamic impact in our city. Pictures of the progress on the building to come.

I wanted to comment on Jeff's (my brother-in-law) blog entry that he posted yesterday about working with resistant people. I recently heard a message in one of the missions conferences that I was a part of last week and the main speaker was talking about sowing and reaping. He said that some missionaries are in reaping countries and others are in sowing countries. Being a Missionary to Spain I understand that it is a sowing country.  However, I really believe that a harvest is going to come as long as we continuing sowing, maybe not in our generation but it will come.  God does not reward us according to the number of souls that we lead to Christ. He will reward us for our motives, our heart, and our faithfulness. While on deputation, the Lord has given me a message about what missions is all about. The main premise of this message is that the core responsibility of missions is to make the gospel available to every person on earth, not to save the most amount of people, like many think. This really transforms what we consider as success. This principle will give us perspective for our ministry in Spain and help us to have the right outlook.   The question is: "How do we measure our success?"  Do we measure it by the number of souls saved or by the amount of people that have had access to the gospel through our efforts.   In my opinion, if more missionaries would understand this concept than less would leave the field because of discouragement. That doesn't mean we won't have discouragement but as long as we keep the right focus we should make it just fine. Jesus never commanded that we save people but only that we evangelize them. That is the challenge of missions.  

My friend Aaron wrote on his blog about people working with "hard" or "resistant" people. He made some very good points and I wanted to share a few. As most people know, Spain is a country with very resistant people. It seems that more missionaries are coming and then leaving, then coming and staying. I have been here for 2 years and I have already seen at least 3 families that I know of leave the field. So what is to be done in a country with resistant people? Here are some things Aaron pointed out on his blog...

"2. Every people group is resistant until they hear over and over and over…

Did you know that India had no Christians when William Carry arrived? He labored preaching and translating for six years before the first convert. Today there are millions of believers in India. The same story is told of Adoniram Judson of Burma.

Places where the gospel has never been planted are hard. They must be plowed, planted, and watered over many years. The first missionaries one hundred years ago that served in the Muslim country I am in during the push of the Student Volunteer Missions Movement served for sometimes 10 to 20 years with no converts. Just fifteen years ago the number of believers here was around 100 after almost a century of sowing. Today the number is in the thousands and growing faster than anyone really knows though it’s still less than .01%.

A friend who is a missionary in China asked me the other day how long it takes for someone here to accept Christ on average after hearing the Gospel for the first time. The answer was years, not days or weeks. Actually the quickest I had known someone here to believe on Christ was after two years. The average is a lot more. That being the case, if I drop into a city where few have ever heard the Gospel and there is massive pressure against conversion, I can expect to sow more than I reap in the first few years of ministry. So what can I do? I can sow like a wild man. I can be creative and throw the seed out in as many ways as I can imagine. I can use internet, TV, mailouts, DVDs, booklets, New Testaments, friendships, …and a hundred ideas I haven’t thought of yet."

He makes a valid point here.  Sometimes as missionaries, we come to a country with preconceived ideas of what it is going to be like.  We see others who have thriving ministries in other countries and we desire to have the same. The desire is not a bad one as it is great to set goals in our life and ministry to strive for. However, it takes a mature, well-informed laborer to understand his/her field. Every place is different and understanding where you are is imperative. When you understand that you are in a place to sow and to sow and to sow, you will understand your purpose for being there and when you don’t have a church of 50 to 100 people in the first year, you won’t be discouraged, give up, and leave. Does that mean you suppress your desires for a thriving work? Of course not. But we must not be naïve or disillusioned and we must understand the field in which we work.

Deanna and I are part of a team here in Spain. Before the team came together and we knew that God was leading us to Spain, we understood the field of Spain and the need for sowing and sowing and more sowing. So God had placed on my heart various ministries and outreaches in order to sow the seed such as printing, mailouts, CD's, booklets, internet, etc. Right now we are working on the Gospel DVD project that will sow the seed in our city. 150,000 people will hear the Gospel on DVD. We are excited about this project. But what about the other cities of Spain? Who will sow? We all want to be reapers. But who will be the faithful sowers?

"5. Examine your methods

Here are some questions we all must ask ourselves: What could I do to get the Word out more? I’ve never seen a fish jump in a boat. But I have sat in a boat all day with my dad with only two strings in the water and caught just a couple fish. Could I put more poles out? Could I use a net? Am I utilizing every possible tool in the search for what works best in this culture? We have found that internet is a great way to find those interested in the Gospel here in North Africa. It may not be necessary in China but here it has catapulted our ministry years ahead of where it would have been otherwise. We’ve seen people saved and baptized and churches started through the internet outreach alone. What might work in your country? Maybe those little pink and grey tracts aren’t cutting it in your culture? Maybe?"

What works in America doesn't mean it will work in other countries and cultures.  God gives us the principle in his Word to spread the Gospel to all the World.  The interesting thing is that he doesn't set guidelines for "how."  Everything we do is a method.  This DVD project is a method.  Passing out tracts is a method.  Going to a park to talk to someone is a method.  Going door to door is a method.  We have to examine our methods and understand what is working for us.  When I say "working" I don't mean how many people are coming to Christ through what we do.  We must never forget that someone comes to Christ because GOD is working in his or her lives, not us.  God may give us the privilege to be the one who is present while they make their decision for Christ, but He is the one who has done the work, not us.  We never know who seeded and who sowed in that person's life to get them to the point where they are ready to accept Christ.  So when I say we must examine our methods to see if they are "working" what I mean is are people having the chance to hear the Gospel through what we are doing.  For example, if we found out that 99% of the people who received the DVD from this DVD project did not watch them, then we would seriously have to reconsider this method.  I have heard some preachers say that you aren't fulfilling your personal evangelism responsibilities if you aren't witnessing to people face to face.  This is simply not true and an unbiblical statement.  This places more emphasis on the person being a "soulwinner" instead of the word of God being the power of God that works in the hearts of people.  The pastor I was saved under was saved because someone placed a Gospel tract on his desk.  He read it, went home that night and accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior.  The Word of God penetrated his heart and did an eternal work.  Was that person, who placed the tract on his desk, not fulfilling his personal evangelism duty because he did not talk to him face to face? Of course not.

One man got saved after watching our Gospel DVD presentation. Was it any less valid that this man was saved by watching the DVD instead of someone personally talking to him face to face? Of course no; because it was the power of the Word of God that penetrated this man’s heart. God did the saving work. This man was saved, not just because of seeing our Gospel on DVD, but because of countless emails and letters from a friend who became a Christian 11 years ago here in Spain. God used all of these things to plant a seed and sow in this man’s heart to prepare it for His salvation.

The point is, we must examine our methods and get rid of all the “traditions” we have been taught about spreading the Gospel. Don’t’ misunderstand me. I am not saying that we should not talk to people face to face or spread the Gospel through traditional ways. I personally believe one of the most effective ways is being able to talk with those “in your world” i.e. your workplace, school, etc. What I am saying is that so many are caught up in the idea that the Gospel has to be spread “this one way” or we are not fulfilling our duty as Christians. This idea is false. As my friend stated, the Muslim world is coming to Christ heavily through Internet, TV, radio, etc.

So what will it take here in Spain? What ways can we think of to spread the Gospel and to sow and to sow and to sow even more to spread the Gospel to the 44 million people here in Spain?

If you would like to read the full post on my friends blog, go here.

Watch the Video or read about it below.

WATCH THE DVD PRESENTATION BELOW
Watch the Gospel on DVD (Spanish)	Don't know Spanish?  Watch it in English

I wanted to give you an update on how God is already blessing this DVD Project. It truly amazes me how generous God’s people can be. So far, enough money has been given to produce and get the gospel to 8,622 households. Our team made the initial investment to buy enough supplies to get the Gospel to 5,000 households so in total and as of right now, we will be able to get the Gospel on DVD to 13,622 households.

BUT WAIT, THAT’S NOT ALL!!! Wait until you hear this. This is how amazing our God is. When we bought our first 5,000 DVD’s, the company that sold them to us shipped us the WRONG kind of DVD. The printer/duplicator that we have only takes InkJet DVD’s. When I ordered the first 5,000 DVD’s , it was with the duplicator so the salesman knew exactly what kind of DVD’s were needed for that machine. Apparently when they went to ship the DVD’s, they grabbed the wrong order and shipped us 5,000 of the wrong kind. So when I got the DVD’s here to Spain, I tried them out on our new fancy duplicator, and it didn’t work! I was about to pull my hairs out! So I got on the phone with the company and told them the problem and they decided to let us KEEP the DVD’s and REFUND our money. SO WE GOT 5,000 FREE DVD’s! HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD!!!. We were also able to find a way of using the 5,000 free DVDs. So right now we have enough to get the Gospel on DVD to 18,622 households. What an amazing opportunity. Remember, we are talking about households. You can multiply that number by 2 if not 3 and that’s how many people will have the chance to hear the Gospel on DVD.

The blessings don’t stop there. We have posted the video on YouTube and have had almost 1,000 views. We have given the weblink to various people who have wanted to share the video with their family and friends who don’t know the Lord. One man in particular sent it to many of his friends and family members. One of his friends who he has been witnessing to for many years received the video. He told me that after watching the video, something resonated in his heart and mind and he trusted Christ as his Lord and Savior. What a blessing it was to hear that. All the effort and money to produce the DVD was worth it for that one testimony. We have had such good response from this and we haven’t even started delivering them in our own city yet. Several missionaries to Spanish speaking countries around the world have already requested the DVD for use in their own city. We have begun duplicating the DVD and have duplicated almost 4,000. We are so excited about what the Lord is going to do through this Gospel DVD. Thank you for your prayers and gifts.

We have begun holding bible studies at my in-laws house. Our first official bible study was last Sunday and one lady came. Yesterday, we held our second bible study and had 2 people. In the picture above, the man on the right side is named Fernando. He trusted Christ as Lord in Argentina and came to Spain 8 years ago. However, he has not been a part of a church since he came to Spain. He recently enrolled in a correspondence course that requires him to be a faithful member of a church. So he came for this reason. We are praying that he will continue to come, but that the Lord will work in his heart about being faithful to the Lord out of love for Him instead of doing what is required to do. The lady sitting next to him is Isabel. She started attending the church in Madrid that Deanna and I were working in. She was very faithful to the services. She use to take a bus from where she lives to the church that would take over 2 hours one way. The town where we live is much closer to where she lives. She was with us last week for our first bible study. During the last family camp, she put her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as her Savior. She now wants to be baptized so we may hold our first ever baptism very soon. We are very excited. Pray for the work as we move forward. We have not even started our big "push" with the DVD project and the Lord is working. It is His work and not ours and we are just excited and honored to be a part of what He is doing.

THE VIDEO IS NOW IN ENGLISH!

I have made the video in english so those of you who don't know spanish can understand what is being said.

We are exciting about this project.  Many people have already given so that they can have a part in getting the gospel on DVD to someone here in Spain.  You can learn more about this project, watch videos, and even donate  monetarily by clicking on the link below.

http://www.thatallmayknow.net/the-gospel-on-dvd-project.html

 

This post came from my wife's personal blog and I wanted to share it with you.

 

While at camp last week, I gave each of the girls in my cabin an assignment. The first day, they were to look in the Bible for something about God that they did not already know. The next day, they had to find something about what the Bible says that we are. We named it the Who Is He? and Who Am I? challenge. The girls did a great job and each found something different about both subjects. We arrived at this conclusion: My worth is not in who I am, but in who He is. When we understand who He is and how much He loves us, it is only then that we can understand what it means for our worth to be in Him. This is much greater than any worth that we can think we have apart from Him. Our goal therefore, should be to find out who He is. He promises to be a rewarder to all that diligently seek HIM! (Hebrews 11:6). If my goal in seeking God is only to help me, then I will not find Him. If I seek Him alone, then He will be my reward and then "...all these things shall be added unto you." (Matt. 6:33)

Watch the video below.  This is how we are going to get the DVD to 50,000 households in our city.

 

It was amazing to see God working in the hearts of the young people at teen camp.  I had the privilege of being a counselor and seeing first hand God working in the hearts of my campers.  

One of the neat things that I saw was one of the campers in my cabin take a spiritual lead.  Even though young, he seems to be a natural leader.  During free time I would often see him off by himself reading the Bible.  

Every night, before going to bed, he would open up his bible, along with the devotional "My Daily Bread, " and start reading it.  The other campers would gather around him to read with him. He would start assigning his fellow companions the specific passages of scriptures to read and all the while I would sit back and let it happen...without any pressure or nudging from me.  This was one of the highlights of their day.  It was a great thing to witness.

However, each morning I reminded them that during a week such as camp, it is easy to be "spiritual."  It is easy to focus on scripture, the Lord, etc. because there are no outside influences.  It is a week completely without TV, Internet, video games, email, cell phones, etc.  AAAHH!!!  What do we do?  :)  

So I proposed the question, "what are you going to do two weeks from now, one month from now when you are out of this environment of good preaching every night and Christians on every side?  The decisions that you made this week, will they stick, last and will you remember them one month from now?"  

Unfortunately, as we have all seen, many decisions made during camp don't last and two weeks to a month later, that person who made the decision is the same ole person they were before they made the decision, or worse.  

So, every morning, during our devotional time, I reminded them of this and I told them that the Christian life is not a success because of the decisions you made in camp or during a church service.  The Christian life is a daily walk with God.  It is a decision to wake up EVERY morning and say, I am going to follow my Lord today!  I am going to obey my Lord today!  Yes, the decisions in camps and conferences are great, but the way we keep those decisions and live them is to wake up every morning and make the decision that we are going to remember the decision we made, follow the decision according to God's Word, and obey what God has told us to do.  It is a daily, consistent, action.  THERE IS NO SECRET TO THE CHRISTIAN LIFE!  We must decide daily  to follow our Lord.