Prayers from a tired Daddy...

As I was praying with my daughter I had a thought.  How often do I simply pray, "Lord, please bless _______'s sleep.  In Jesus name, amen."  How often do I pray about things that really matter, in the hearing of my children?
  There are a lot of excuses I use when praying with the kids, "I'm tired."  "They don't need to hear me pray a long prayer..."  "I'm tired."  "If I get it done quick, then the kids can just go to sleep."  And at various times, these excuses are valid.
  But the question I ask myself is, "What am I modelling for my children?"  If the only time they see me pray is at dinner or before bed, what kind of example am I setting?  And when I pray, why not pray with them about things that are relevant to their lives, and Biblical?
  The reason we should be praying is because of our love for the One we are praying to:  our Father God.  I understand that God is different from our earthly fathers, but let's just think about something for a moment.  In "real life" if I just talked to my dad 2 times a day, and all I said was "Thanks for the food, and help me to sleep."  How strong would our relationship be?  And imagine if I never listened to him when he tried to tell me something.  I never listened when he told me he loved me; or I ignored his warnings to avoid trouble...and then I taught my children to be the same way (of course not on purpose, but by default.).
  How is the best way for me to model a loving prayer life to my children?   I know the answer, but it means work.    LOVE God.  Just like every relationship that's worth anything didn't just happen overnight, there is a daily struggle to spend time with Him, talk to Him, read His own letter to me(you know, THE BIBLE).  It seems to me the best way to model prayer, and model love for God is to actually love him and let the kids see it.  They will be able to tell by my life, and my love for God should overflow into my prayers.  It's easy to talk with someone you love, and it's not awkward.
  I hope yumob will pray for me in this regard.  Pray that I will be a faithful son who truly loves God, and searches for time to spend with Him--and that I teach my children to do the same.

"...But the LORD directs his steps."

As I walk through life, I find myself asking questions.  And then thinking of scenarios.  For example, "What if there was a pool full of Jell-o and I was allowed to swim in it?"  My kids and I ask each other "Would you rather..." questions.  For example, "Would you rather eat chicken, or pizza?"  Or, "Would you rather skydive, or cliff dive?"  Then the kids get in on the action...  Cam cracks me up with, "Dad! Would you rather jump off a cliff of Jell-o into eyeballs, or jump off of water into water?"(Yes, he has seriously said that.)
  We think of a lot of scenarios in our lives.  We think about the "what-ifs" that we can't control but we think about what we'd do if we could.  "If I had a million dollars..."(I could buy bananas in Australia! lol)
  I was thinking the other day about the sovereignty of God.  He has a plan for our lives, even when we don't know what's going to happen tomorrow.  "For I know the plans I have for you..."  I imagine God up in heaven saying, "Now, little does he know it, but you'll like the part that comes next...."  Or, "Look at what happens next!"
   God has a plan for our lives.  I'm thankful we can trust him with our futures, no matter what may happen.  I've had so many plans and scenarios in my life, and God has used some of those scenarios while leaving others undone(or perhaps yet to happen?)...  I take comfort in knowing that my God is in control of everything.  Nothing surprises him, and in his infinite wisdom, he uses everything to shape us into the men/women He had planned.  No matter what the circumstances are, He will complete the work He began in us.

 "The mind of man plans his way,
But the Lord directs his steps.

He is Faithful.

Triumphant blogs are hard to write when you're not feeling triumphant.  Putting your best face forward doesn't always require a mask.  I don't necessarily thrive on uncertainty.  I feel down, useless, and unwanted.  I feel weak, stupid, and pathetic.  But the thing is, MY HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL ELSE.

  I've been tempted to believe the lies that say, "You're not supposed to be in Australia, Jared.  You're not with Wycliffe anymore.  What's the point?  Your family is all in the US, and they miss you.  Don't waste your time here.  Go home.  Go home."

  I've been tempted to believe the lies in my own spirit that I am worthless, can't do much, and I'm not needed for anything anyway.  The lies press in on every side so much so that I almost want to just quit. Who needs this anyway?  But there is always one quiet, gentle voice, saying, "I brought you here.  I am not looking for what YOU can do for ME.  I'm interested in the man you are becoming, and I am shaping you.  Don't give up."  

  Sometimes that really angers me!   I wish I could just simply go through life being "religious"--doing all the "right" things, and not worry about the inner man.  I wish it was all how I looked on the outside, because I can play the game pretty well.  I've been a Christian for years.  I know how to act.  But is the Holy Spirit truly the one in control, or is it just my fear of what people might say?   The thing is, God IS interested in making me truly sanctified starting from the very core of my being    outward.

  This is such a struggle because every single day I am faced with my sin, my deceitful heart, and my deep sadness and nagging doubts.  I know I'm unworthy.  I know I have no hope to become what God wants me to be... APART from Him. 

  I serve a loving, understanding, patient and kind God.  Even when my deceitful heart is raging within my chest and I'm trying to crawl into the coffin next to my old man(the one who was crucified with Christ--Gal. 2:20), and completely stop doing anything the Lord has called me to do---God has defeated my deceitful heart.  I don't need to listen anymore to the lies that try to sway me and draw me into despair... away from the God who loves me.        

He tells me, "Call me Abba, Father."  He takes my hand, and leads me on, He speaks Truth to my heart.  As I read the Bible, God speaks to my heart and tells me the truth about Himself, about me, and about the world I'm living in.

  So, I think again about the desire to be "religious" instead of "sanctified"...  If simply having an outward show of religiosity does nothing to bring me closer to the Father God who loves me, nothing to truly bring about an inner sanctification, I need to spend more time focusing on Him.  I need to turn my deceitful heart over to God and allow Him to cleanse and purify it.  Though I fail every single day, I trust that God's Word is true.  

  

"For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it  until the day of Christ Jesus."  Philippians 1:6

Psalm 103 (NIV) Scripture Song.

This is a Scripture I put to music to help myself and my kids to memorize the Bible more.  I hope it's a blessing to you all as well.  Just copy and paste the link below to the web address browser.  God bless, yumob!  :)


https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/97689563/Scripture%20Songs/Psalm%20103.m4a

Mullets, Motels, and Ministry

It has been far too long, and life has changed quite a bit.  There have been many things going through my mind that I wanted to share with you all.  God has opened doors for ministry even when I feel like I'm not doing enough of it!

Jared(I) has been working at the motel and we are getting into a routine...Though it is not "professional ministry", God(in His grace) brings people to me.  There has been more than one occasion where people have said, "Are you a Christian?  Will you pray for me?"
  One evening Bethany and I rode my bike(she sat on the seat and I pedalled) to the grocery store (Woolies).  After picking up our items and hopping back on the bike, an indigenous lady started waving in our direction.  I didn't know her, so I looked behind to see if there was someone else who was standing there...but it was just me.  She came over and introduced herself as the sister of another lady we knew from Barunga.  She said, "You're with the Christian mob, aye?"  and then she asked me to pray for her.  Immediately after I finished praying for her, another olgamen(old woman) took my hand and said, "Pray for me too."  So, with Bethany on the back of the bike, we prayed.

The motel is going through renovations right now, and we've had several different men come to work with us.  I was helping one of the men and he said, "So, how long do you think you'll be in Katherine?"  I simply said, "As long as the Lord allows."  And then he shared that he was a Christian, too, but didn't go to church.  He asked me if I thought God was more pleased with the Christians who go to church than with those who don't.  It reminded me of Jesus' parable about the tax collector and the Pharisee praying side by side.  Which one went away justified in God's sight?  I told him that going to church doesn't make us more holy in God's sight, or save us.  The only thing that saves us is Jesus Christ's death on the cross and resurrection.  If we believe in him, confess our sins, and confess Jesus Christ is Lord, that's when we're saved.  However, church is good to give us encouragement from other believers and help us to grow in our walk with the Lord.

There have been random times when people just say, "Are you a Christian?" and then I get to share my faith with them! :)  This doesn't happen every single day, but I'm thankful when it does.  Please pray for me as I work and adjust to the motel...there have been times when I say, "This isn't what God built me for!"...and yet, that is where he has put me for now.  I want to serve well and be an excellent employee/boss--which is challenging at times.

Cheri has been doing well and is building strong friendships with a couple of different ladies in Katherine.  It has been very encouraging for her.  She is such a blessing to me.  She's learning how to sew as well, which has been fun for her.  One of her new friends in Katherine came over today and taught her. :)  I know Cheri is a blessing to the ladies she is getting to know, as well as to the ladies she has known for a long time.

The kids are doing well and the adjustment to Katherine has been pretty easy for them. :)  School is fun for them, and they are learning to swim--in school!  These past two weeks, Bethany and Cam are having swimming class every day, and in the next couple of weeks, Alice will go with her class.  Cam LOVES IT.  He comes home and tells me all about it.  Bethany does as well.  She told me last night, "Dad we played [name of game] at the pool and GUESS WHO WON?  EUGENE!"  She is such a vibrant passionate little girl.
  Alice is looking forward to her turn.  They are all making new friends, and Alice told me today, "I know all the kids in the classes 1 and 2."  Knowing that they are doing well is encouraging to me and Cheri.

We have the curriculum for the children's ministry now, and are looking forward to meeting with the other church leaders to hammer out the details.  Please pray for all of us, and for the kids in our church as well as throughout Katherine and the Northern Territory.  We are in a hurting place.  Also, please lift up our pastor and his family as they wait for their visas to be approved.  The sooner they can get to Australia, the better.

Thank you all so much for all your prayers and support of our family in the direction God has led us.  We really cherish you and praise the Lord for each of you.  Please feel free to drop us an e-mail, or comment on this post, too.  It really means a lot when we hear from you.  May God bless you as you continue to serve Him where He has put you.  Pray we would serve well in whatever circumstance God places us in.

The Next Step...

Dear Friends and Family,

            Greetings from Australia!  We have been serving here with AuSIL, the local branch of Wycliffe for 2 ½ years. Many of the goals we had before coming to Australia have been accomplished.  We have built relationships here, we have learned (and continue to learn) Kriol.  We have been part of dubbing the Luke DVD into Kriol.  We have also been part of many different Bible study workshops and one song writing workshop.  We have been blessed with an excellent team to work with, and have built lasting friendships with our team members.

            Though we have been able by the Lord’s grace to accomplish much, we feel the Lord leading us in a new direction.  We would like to serve through our local church in Katherine, and be able to teach more than is possible within Wycliffe.  We feel led to begin a youth ministry at our church in Katherine.  The church we have been attending is a new Baptist church plant, and there are many opportunities to serve through the church. 

            Through our time serving with Wycliffe I have noticed something significant.  Older people don’t seem to care as much about coming to church or serving God if they haven’t grown up with it.  The women who have been coming have consistently remembered with smiles the Bible clubs or weekly Bible meetings at their church when they were children.

            As I have observed the children in this area, I can see that they are lost.  The methods being used to reach out to them aren’t overly successful.  There are good beginnings, but there is a lack of consistent outreach for various reasons, with little or no follow-up.  Follow-up is also known as the first step to discipleship.

            The ladies in the church have all agreed; there needs to be more outreach to the youth, and  they have suggested a weekly meeting for the kids.  While serving with Wycliffe, I would not be able to take the lead in this ministry, though the ladies are all grandmothers and either working or too old/sick/busy to carry out this type of ministry on their own.  Wycliffe’s stance is for the indigenous church to take the lead in ministry, not the non-indigenous person to come and take over.  My intent isn’t to take over, but to serve until the time comes when the churches here are able to reach out on their own, training people up who are passionate about reaching the youth.

            Living costs in the Northern Territory are rather high.  As a result of our move and a quadrupled rent price, I looked for a job to help meet the costs we will have.  I have been offered a job working at a motel here in Katherine.  It is a full-time position as a receptionist/manager.  This was an answer to prayer for us.  However, it will also limit our time in ministry. 

            Our hope and tentative plan is to have a sort of youth group meeting fortnightly.  One week in Katherine for the kids there, and the other week in Barunga.  We will do one group in English, and the other group in Kriol.  This would include games, singing with guitar, and then the Bible lesson and prayer.

            Since we will be leaving Wycliffe, our new accountability is our church here, the pastor and elders.  This also means we will no longer be supported through Wycliffe.  We wanted to thank each and every one of you for your faithful prayers and support over the past 5 years we’ve been with Wycliffe.  Each of you have been a blessing to us, and we will not forget your love and sacrifice for our family and the Kingdom. 

            We will be heading back to the States for a brief visit during the school holidays over here, to debrief from our time with Wycliffe as well as see family & friends.   Our tentative schedule is as follows:

            Dec 11-14 Dallas TX, for debriefing from Wycliffe

              Dec 15-18 Austin TX

              Dec 19-24 Phoenix/Tucson AZ

              Dec 24-31 Longmont CO

              Dec 31-Jan 5 Bemidji MN

            Jan 5 –Jared flies back to Australia to begin work at the motel; Cheri and the kids will remain through Jan 21 in MN/IL to visit friends and family.

            Please let us know if you’d like to get together with us while we’re in your area.  We would love the opportunity to reconnect with as many folks as possible.

            Again, for those who have served alongside us through prayer and financial support, thank you so much for joining us in the ministry God gave us, and may the Lord bless you as you continue to serve Him, whether it’s with us or in some other way.  You have been a blessing and we’re grateful for you. 

            If God is leading you to continue with us, please pray for us during this time of transition.  If you would like to give financially, we are currently working out how that can happen.  We will keep you updated through our blog and e-mail, and if you’ve got Facebook… J

                                                Serving Him Together,

                                                            Jared and Cheri,  Alice, Bethany, and Cameron

Real Ministry?

Often times I think people have a skewed view of who a missionary is and what a missionary does.  When people think of overseas workers they may think: "They like eating weird foods like grubs, kangaroo, shark stomach, and pig's head."

Then they may think, "They live in huts, have no running water, and have to save all their plastic bags because they don't have anything like that in (insert a country name).  They're the ones who are telling people about Jesus in unreached parts of the world."  Still others may think, "They're the ones who are constantly asking people for money, and they don't even do a real job."(hopefully this misguided group is a small one...)

As we work over here in Australia (or should I say, "Down Under?"), the definition of what a missionary is and what a missionary does eludes me at times.  Does it truly matter where we are on the globe?  Does it really matter what our climate is and what the wildlife look like?  What is the point of a missionary?
 
Aren't we called to go into all the world and make disciples of all nations?  Yes.  Are we called to bring others to Christ?  Yes.  Are we called to become like people we're trying to reach in order to be effective?  Yes.  Are these commands only for people who are "missionaries" in Australia, or Indonesia, or any other country?   NO.  Aren't these true for all Christians everywhere?

My prayer for every believer is that we realise God has made us with a specific purpose, and we have a part in His amazing plan to draw all men to Himself.  Where do we fit?  IN THE BODY OF CHRIST.  Are we all the same?  NO, praise the Lord!  But we've got to do the work God has laid before us to do, no matter what that looks like.  Not everyone is going to be heading to Australia to live in an indigenous community, learn a new language, and do workshops helping others to study God's Word in that language.  Not every believer is called to move to a new country to serve the Lord.  However, we are all called to make disciples.  We are all called to go and be witnesses.  We are all commanded to offer up our bodies as living sacrifices to God(which is acceptable).

What does that look like?  Well,(I ask myself) where has God placed me?  Who are the people around me?  Am I reaching out to them in a way that is relevant to them?  Am I using the gifts God has given me to bring glory to His name?  Am I doing everything I possibly can to bring glory to Him by helping others to know Him?

Oftentimes I feel unworthy, inadequate, like a failure, and a bit like nothing I do really matters.  However, according to God's Word, nothing done for him is a waste of time.  NOTHING.  I am not perfect, but I must continue to serve the Lord with all my heart--as imperfect and incomplete as my service may be--because He commands me to.  And because my life is not my own.  And aside from all that, what else is there for me, anyway?  Nothing.  Apart from Christ, nothing else matters.  And I will trust Him to take my broken, imperfect, incomplete work and make it useful, perfect, and complete.

What is "real ministry"?   I believe it's knowing exactly who our Master is, and fully submitting to His will, and teaching others to do the same.  More than that, to truly know Him, and to grow closer to Him every day--and help others to grow closer to Him as well.  The encouraging thing is, our Master is also our Father and He loves us, wants his best for us, and will walk with us and help us the entire way.