Dealing with the police with only six months language training

Recently, John went to the airport with Mark Siekbert a fellow missionary in Mongolia to pick up a missionary who was coming into town. They were driving to the airport in a nine passenger van. On the way to the airport a policemen pulled them over. In Mongolia, a policeman sometimes stop drivers only to check their car registration and driver's license.

Mark was unaware that a nine passenger van requires a different endorsement on a driver's license. Seven passenger vans do not require such an endorsement. This causes no end of confusion as drivers wonder whether their van is considered a seven passenger van or a nine passenger van.

So the policeman checked the vehicle registration and Mark's driver's license and then confiscated his registration and license. Mark has only had a few lessons in Mongolian. John himself only has six months of Mongolian. So the responsibility fell on John to communicate with the police officer.

I was surprised to hear later that John was able to talk the policeman into allowing Mark to continue on out to the airport with the agreement that they would stop on the way back to clear up the confusion. So Mark and John went out to the airport, picked up their fellow missionary, and returned to discuss the issue with the policeman.

I was impressed that John was able to handle the situation as adroitly as he did. He's doing well with the language. On Sunday he spent some time talking with several Mongolians.

God's protection while driving

This morning while driving to pick people up for the church's service, I had pedestrians scare me in two separate incidents.

The first incident occurred when I was still near home. I had just turned onto the main road and was headed north when a teenage boy and girl crossed to the middle of the street ahead of me. Once in the middle, they hesitated and then the young man ran in front of my vehicle. That was not a problem because plenty of space remained between me and him. The young lady however remained standing on the white line marking the middle of the street but looked as if she might run anytime. This became more of a problem as I approached her and continued to be unsure of her intentions. I slowed and moved towards the right shoulder to give myself more response time should she make a sudden move. As she stood in the middle, I passed her; after I passed I looked into my rear view mirror to notice what she did. She ran in front a car following behind me; the car braked sharply to avoid hitting her. I was thankful to the Lord that she did not run in front of my car.

The second incident occurred mere minutes later when I was traveling on a different street. My jeep was one vehicle in a line of perhaps six or seven cars all traveling in close proximity to each other. I noticed ahead of me that a young girl perhaps six or seven looked as if she was about to cross the road. I figured she would wait until all five or six cars passed before crossing since there did not seem to be much room between cars for a person to pass safely. Suddenly she darted behind the car that I was following which meant that she was trying to cross in front of me. I hit my brakes while moving towards the shoulder again in an effort to buy time to stop.

She hesitated in the middle of my lane as if she was now reconsidering her decision to cross the road in front of my car. By God's grace I was able to stop in time, and she finished crossing the street in front of my car.

Sometimes the safety God provides from day to day is so providential that we don't even notice it. Today it was strikingly apparent that God was protecting me and enabling me to drive safely despite the careless pedestrians around me.

Local religion

This week's picture was taken by one of the young men during a speaking practice trip to the most famous Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. This is one of the small building there. It contains several idols within. Outside are some prayer wheels. People believe that by spinning these prayer wheels they obtain favor from the gods. Please pray that we will be a bright light in this land of darkness.

Purpose of the Bible institute

The Bible institute work that I do in Mongolia by God's grace will have the greatest impact of any of the ministries with which I have been involved since coming to this country. The Bible institute will be an incubator where Mongolian men can be trained to serve their own people and take the Gospel to the rest of the world.

It is because of the Biblical injunction to train faithful men who shall be able to teach others also in II Timothy 2:2 that I was challenged to start these classes. Of course, there is teaching on Sundays and Wednesdays. Also, I have had basic Bible studies with many of these men in their homes. However, the Bible institute is designed in such a way that it places a greater burden on men to be diligent in their studies. The Bible institute has tuition; it is a small amount but enough to make the men ask themselves what they expect to get out of the class. There are quizzes each week and a final examination at the end of the term. Those whose marks merit such will receive a certificate showing that they have completed the course. It is my goal to offer enough courses over the next several years to enable a man who studies diligently to be granted a certificate of completion in Biblical studies. Because all official schools and their curriculum must be approved by the government it is unlikely that we will ever be able to offer a diploma. However, by having some sort of documentation of their work I hope to encourage men to stick with the program for several years and increase their knowledge of the Bible.

The Bible institute will also provide training for the translators necessary to work on a faithful translation of God's word into beautiful Mongolian. The current translation is something with which we can and do work. We encourage all Mongolians to read their Bible daily, to study it faithfully, and to obey it. However, those of us with access to the Bible in other languages can see the current translations deficiencies. You must remember that from the first translation of the Bible in English by John Wycliffe to the publication of the King James Version in 1611 was nearly 230 years. We should expect that initial translations of God's word into Mongolian will need some help.

The Bible institute provides a formal way to give some of the necessary help. Every good Bible translation should have a wealth of knowledge about the Bible at his fingertips and an excellent understanding of Biblical doctrines. Such doctrinal preparation will be invaluable to them as they approach the translation of Scripture.

A rigorous study of Bible doctrine will also enable Mongolians Christians to challenge error when they hear it. Many Christians in Mongolia when talking of false doctrine will say something to the effect, "I don't believe that but ..." and offer some excuse as to why they do not confront false doctrine. I believe that many Mongolian Christians see the Bible as a mysterious book whose teachings cannot be known exactly. Rather they believe that there is wide latitude for various understandings. While the human mind because of its finite capacity cannot comprehend all that God has for us, the Bible is a book that God wants us to understand. Too often Mongolians will refuse to engage teachers of false doctrines because they simply do not know their Bible well enough. So error proliferates at an alarming rate while truth seemingly grows slowly. The Bible institute will contribute to the growth of truth and equip believers to confront error when they hear it.

The Bible institute by requiring attendance, charging a nominal fee, encouraging note-taking, and examining the students' retention of doctrine will illustrate to Mongolian Christians the seriousness of Bible study and research. It is not enough for Christians to have a superficial knowledge of the Bible.

The Bible institute has also been a help to me as I prepare and translate materials. Many theological words remain undefined in Mongolian. Teaching at a Bible institute level grants me the opportunity and privilege to study more myself as I prepare to teach others.

Our first Bible institute class, we had eight Mongolians. At our second Bible institute class, five returned and a new Mongolian who had previously expressed an interest came. Another Mongolian came to me later to apologize for missing the class. Please pray for Bill and I as we teach and pray for the Mongolians as they study the most important work ever written because it was penned by God.

Weekly update

This past week has been very busy since Roland Gay from the US has been here. The church has had some extra meetings, and Roland, Bill, and I have been meeting a lot to discuss translation. Sometimes I wish that there were two of me or even three of me to accomplish all the things that need to be done.

Sunday's turnout was excellent. We had five first-time visitors and heard a good message from Roland.

At the Bible institute class on Tuesday, we had five returning Mongolians and one new student who had talked to me earlier about coming but was unable to attend the first class.

Please continue to pray for these "mixed" families where one spouse is saved and the other is not. I specifically asked you to pray a few weeks ago for Byambaa's husband Mandaa who was hoping to got to Kalmyk Republic in Russia to work. Byambaa does not know any details because her husband is not talking to her about it anymore. However, he was supposed to leave last week sometime and is still here. So maybe that is a good sign.

Sunday update

We had a good turnout in the morning service. Roland and Ganpurev preached. I was not sure where Ganpurev was going when he opened his sermon with the question, "When was the Holy Spirit created?" He went on to tell us that the Holy Spirit was a member of the Trinity and therefore was not a created being. It was a decent sermon for a difficult topic such as the Holy Spirit.

Oyungerel, the mother who came in with her children Saturday night, was back with her children. Her children attended the children's Sunday school class while she stayed with the adults.

Bob was back too for the first time in a while. I think he is making a serious effort to do right and read his Bible everyday. Let's pray for God's protection and help. To me, he seems like a young plant that needs sunlight and water in proper proportion and some protection from the elements to grow. He is still a greenhouse-type of plant.

Special meetings

We held special meetings on Friday and Saturday night where Roland preached. The preaching was good and encouraging. The second night several young children wandered in off the "street" to join us. I think they were mainly bored and wanted to see something.

After leading the singing, I went back and sat with them. They were eager to look up the verses in the Bibles that we loaned them even though it was painfully apparent that they were not even used to using books. They seemed to be to be between four and eight years old.

Occasionally, I would say, "Amen" to something that Roland said. Hearing me say, "Amen" always got their attention. They would echo me with a chorus of amens. With about fifteen minutes left in the service, one of the children's mothers came in and sat through the rest of the service. She asked some questions of one of the ladies and then hurried out. But before she left, I was able to invite her to come back on Sunday.

Roland did a good job of preaching the Gospel during his message which means at least our visitors heard the Gospel that Jesus died and rose again for our sins.

Picture of the week

This week's picture was taken at the Bible institute on Tuesday night. We had eight Mongolians in attendance which was twice the number I was expecting. Pray with us that all eight of them finish.

It's getting warmer

We're glad that it's finally warming up! Last week we saw our first days with temperatures over freezing on consecutive days in months. Today, the temperature reached almost 50° F; it's a heat wave in March. A week ago the high was only 3°.

There will still be some more cold spells, and the most difficult part of spring is the wind. But for now, the children can play outside; and we can open the windows and let the fresh air in.

Weekly update

Our Sunday this week was only average. But the new news is that I finally have started the Bible institute that Bill Patterson and I have been working towards for many months. I realize that a primary part of my ministry here is training men. The Bible institute should facilitate the training of men.

I was expecting two or three men to be involved. Instead we had six men and two ladies at the first session. Please pray that all of them would finish the twelve week course. Later this week, I should be posting a picture on the blog.

On Friday and Saturday evenings this week, we will be having Roland Gay, missionary evangelist to Mongolia, preaching about spiritual revival. Roland is one of the few people in the world who regularly comes to Mongolia and preaches in Mongolian. I am personally very excited to hear his preaching. I have been praying that God will use his messages to stir all of our hearts. Pray with us for the power of the Holy Spirit to be evident, and a spirit of repentance and surrender to pervade the meetings.

Thank you for your prayers. I believe that they are having an effect in Mongolia.

Picture of the week

We recently celebrated the Mongolian Lunar New Year. This is an interesting time of the year to be in Mongolia to observe Mongolian traditions. In this week's picture two Mongolian men dressed in tradition dels are exchanging small bottles called hoorog. Exchanging bottles, also involves exchanging pleasantries. The men ask each other questions such as, "Are you celebrating [the lunar new year] well?" and "Are you spending the spring well."

No matter what the temperature outside, Mongolians consider their lunar new year to be the beginning of spring. Since the lunar new year can occur as early as late January, the Mongolia "spring" can be a quite cold time of year. The high yesterday, for example, barely climbed above freezing.

Pressures and prayer

We are so grateful to know that you pray for us. Situations among our Christian and non-Christians within our circle of influence can become so convoluted that it is nearly impossible for us to understand what exactly is happening and what precisely our Biblical response should be. But we know that come what may, there is hope in Jesus Christ! God is never surprised at the circumstances that we face; He is never overwhelmed at the obstacles that arise.

We take great comfort in knowing that God loves us and blesses us and that you all are praying for us. Although I cannot share all the difficulties that our friends face right now, I know that God knows what they are. Pray that we would have wisdom and comfort wherewith we may comfort others.

Sunday update

What a good Sunday we had!

You may remember that we have been planning a special Women's Day service. In all, 39 Mongolians came out. The men and women split up during the first hour with me teaching a lesson to the men and Ganaa teaching a lesson to the women. After that, Ganpurev preached the Good News of Jesus Christ to all the adults. (The children had their own class).

It probably is not true to say that most of the women had never heard the name "Jesus Christ" before; but it is probably accurate to say that it was the first clear presentation of the Gospel that most have ever heard from a Mongolian.

To give one example, Saikhnaa's sister came. She had been involved for some time with the Unification "Church" also known as the Moonies. So she heard the name "Jesus" there. Unfortunately, what she heard was very different than what the Bible teaches.

Although we did not have any professions of salvation on Sunday, I have encouraged all those who invited guests to be sure to follow up with them. Our prayer is that these seeds will grow into saving faith.

When God brings witnessing opportunities to our door

I often pray that God would keep away unnecessary interruptions. After such prayers, I find that I have no allowance to be frustrated by the interruptions that come. I have already prayed in faith that God would prevent unnecessary interruptions and am now free to focus my attention on the interruption confident that this is the situation that God wants me to concentrate on for the moment. Rather than become frustrated by an obstacle that is keeping me from my original plan, I am aware that the circumstances that I am facing is not a bump on my path but rather a part of God's plan for my day, week, or sometimes month.

Let me digress and deal with an objection or two. Some may ask, "Why pray?" I know that God is sovereign and controls all things, including the circumstances of life in which I find myself. In fact, it is because I am convinced that God arranges all my life's circumstances according to His desire that I pray. Before I often found myself frustrated by little problems that would crop up in my life: a flat tire, some misplaced item, a visit from someone with whom it is difficult to interact. Because I had not prayed, my spirit was not prepared to accept that such seemingly pointless interruptions were from the Lord of all. Which leads me to deal with the second, related objection that my prayers did not change my circumstances. After all, God already has planned and knows all things. It is not as if during my prayer God relented and said, "All right, I won't send this situation today just because you prayed." It is not that I am arguing that my prayer can change God's mind. Rather, I am arguing that my willingness to submit to God's plan and my human request for God to prevent interruptions gives my spirit the proper attitude needed to handle such circumstances.

But back to most recent example. The last few weeks, I have not had as much time to spend in my office as I would like. Multiple trips to the airport, dealing with other individuals in the church, some translation work, making visits during Tsagaan Sar - all these those necessary responsibilities had kept me from the usual amount of Bible study and preparation that I want to put into my sermons and lessons each week.

I came to Wednesday of this week eager to sit down and accomplish some studying. My study was interrupted by the arrival of some Jehovah's Witnesses to the door. I knew that there are JWs in Mongolia. Their kingdom hall is literally a short stone's throw from where the church meets. They have also come to my door two other times.

This time Kristie answered the door and found two ladies waiting to talk to her. They started with some standard questions about believing the Bible, being a Christian, etc. I overheard the conversation and knew from previous experience who it was. I sat in my chair debating whether to go to the door or not. As Kristie began to see where the questions were going. She came to get me.

Is this interruption from the Lord or should I just send them on their way? I thought to myself. After all, I had study to do. And these people were speaking Mongolian. But I sent up a prayer for wisdom and went to the door.

They asked me early in the conversation why I thought there were so many denominations. I thought that was a strange question. Then they asked what I thought was the key to understanding the Bible. With an eye towards keeping the conversation germane, I said that I thought the key to the Bible was understanding Who Jesus Christ is.

They tried to show that Jesus Christ and God the Father could not be the same person. "Think about President Enkhbayar," one of them said to me, "His son cannot be President Enkhbayar."

I took them to John 1:1 knowing how they would answer me. "Jesus is God," I said firmly.

"Yes," they responded, "But there are many gods in the Bible." They even got out a little booklet and had me read a section about the translation of John 1:1 which I had seen before in English claiming the Jesus was a god but not Jehovah God. The pamphlet mentioned that even Satan is called the "god of this world."

"But," I pointed out having anticipated this direction, "all the gods that your pamphlet is talking about are false gods. Satan is a false god." I mentioned a few names of the false gods that Mongolians worship. "These are all false gods. Is Jesus another false god?" I finished up asking.

There response was to say something like, "We can see you know your Bible. Please think about what we said to you."

Realizing that they were leaving, I responded, "Please throw away all these pamphlets that you have and read the Bible."

We need to pray "that the word of God may have free course" and that the heresies that are being taught in Mongolia would be hindered.

Urgent prayer request

Recently something came up for which I would ask your earnest prayers.

There is a church member who has been attending our services for many years. (That is something when we have only been holding services for less than five years.) Her husband Mandaa is not a Christian and tends to be antagonistic towards Jesus Christ - when he is anything at all. He is very quiet, but he is usually quietly stubborn.

Mandaa has decided that he is going to Kalmykia to work. He has been promised a very high salary and three years of work if he goes. Personally, I doubt whether any of this is true. To make matters worse, he wants to take Byambaa but leave their two children ages 1 and 3 in Mongolia. Mandaa's plan is to leave before the end of the March.

Byambaa is unsure what to do: should she go with her husband and leave her children or let her husband go by himself and stay with the children. The family is putting pressure on her to leave the children and go by herself. But no one in Mongolia besides a grandpa who lives by himself has been interested before in taking care of the children. (See this story.) When the three year old was in the hospital with hepatitis, it was our family who watched the younger child.

I am praying that Mandaa would be unable to go to Kalmykia and that the entire family would stay in Mongolia. Please pray with us about this situation. Byambaa needs wisdom from God to know how to respond to her husband and what decision to make. I could use a lot of wisdom to know what advice to give to Byambaa. Most of all, Mandaa needs to be saved from sin and to quit thinking only in terms of money and think about his family's needs.

Please pray. It would be a great encouragement to Byambaa, Kristie, and I to hear from some of you who are led to pray. Just send a short e-mail letting us know that you are praying. We need God's intervention in a difficult situation.

Sunday update

Sunday's attendance was down because of illness. There were two families were felled by illness yesterday. On top of that, the schools all had classes yesterday to make up for a day that we taken off during the lunar new year celebration. I hope that this does not become a habit for schools to have lessons on Sunday.

Ganpurev was away in the countryside which left me with all the responsibilities: the song-leading, the announcing, and the preaching. Kristie and I have been praying that God would raise up a song-leader. This alone would be tremendous help to me. Unfortunately, Ganpurev cannot carry a tune nor has he had any music background. Perhaps it is time to start training him to lead singing.

This Sunday is International Women's Day. It is not an American holiday but seems to have some connection to other countries' celebrations. Since there is no Mother's Day here, we use this Mongolian holiday as an opportunity to honor women. In past years, we have had a meal hosted by the men or a party for husbands and wives.

This year since Women's Day is on a Sunday, we are planning a special service. We have been encouraging the church to invite out mothers, sisters, and other women who do not normally attend church; and there will be a small gift for each lady that comes. Additionally, we are planning to split the first part of the service into separate men's and women's services. Ganaa has agreed to teach the women's class and is preparing a lesson. I will prepare a lesson about honoring women for the men. During the latter part of the service Ganpurev will preach an evangelistic sermon to all these adults. Please pray that God will bless our efforts.

I am realizing more and more that we need the power of the Holy Spirit. I know that God expects us to water and plant, but I also know that it is God that gives the increase. Let's pray together for the Holy Spirit to convict of sin, righteousness, and judgment so that people come to repentence.