One thousand posts

This post is the thousandth time that I've posted to this blog. I think it's appropriate that I post a picture of Ganpurev and his family. While they are not the only family that we've impacted in Mongolia, they are the ones who have come the farthest. Ganpurev is now the pastor at Faith Baptist Church, and his family is a testimony that God's word works in Mongolian families.

Please pray for Ganpurev as he leads his family and Faith Baptist Church.

Deans' March Prayer Letter: Ganpurev's Ordination

 Most missionaries with whom I speak have a desire to see indigenous churches planted. An indigenous church means a self-teaching, self-supporting, self-governing, self-propagating church. A self-propagating church spreads the Good News that Jesus saves, and supports Christians in church-planting efforts; self-governing means that nationals, not missionaries, make the decisions for the church. A self-supporting church does not rely on subsidies to pay its bills, including its pastor. A self-teaching church does not rely on foreigners to preach, teach, or disciple believers.

For me, finding a Mongolian man to lead Faith Baptist Church in Mongolia has been the longest part of the journey. God is very specific in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 about what he expects of the men who oversee His churches. In Mongolia, I have seen firsthand the tragedy of churches led by men who clearly do not meet the qualifications of the pastor that God has laid down. Covetousness, adultery, novices — these all have occurred here. In too many instances, the main qualification that a man had for leadership was English- speaking skills. That gave him direct access to the missionary and his money.

But enough of the dangers and pitfalls of turning over Christ’s churches to the nationals; even in America, we see the calamity of churches led by unqualified men. My goal was to find a man led by the Holy Spirit who was capable of leading Faith Baptist Church and who was willing to do so. Without such a man, Faith Baptist Church can never be truly indigenous.

There are two extremes that a missionary must take care to avoid in turning over a church to nationals. The first extreme is turning the church over too early before proper leadership has had time to develop. The other extreme is thinking that, because the nationals are not Americans, they are not as capable of leading Christ’s church as the missionary is. Both extremes are dangerous; and both extremes are common. In looking for a Mongolian man to be the pastor of Faith Baptist Church, I was looking for a man who evidenced his spiritual maturity through a public stand for Jesus Christ, victory over sin, biblical counsel for fellow believers, and a sincere concern for the welfare of God’s children.

This month, the church ordained Ganpurev to ultimately be the pastor of Faith Baptist Church, fulfilling a major goal in the planting of a truly Mongolian church in Mongolia. Pastor Ben Jaquith of my sending church, Westgate Baptist Church, came to Mongolia to visit. During his visit, Pastor Jaquith joined fellow missionary Jason Ritchie and me in an ordination council. The ordination council lasted almost four hours, partly because most everything had to be translated from English to Mongolian and Mongolian to English. Pastor Jaquith and Brother Ritchie, in particular, had many good questions for Ganpurev. Having trained Ganpurev, I did not ask many questions because I knew what his answers would be. At the end of the ordination council, we all agreed that we could heartily recommend Ganpurev to the church as prepared for ordination and clearly evidencing God’s call on his life to ministry.

Later and unsolicited, Jason Ritchie wrote to his supporting churches about Ganpurev, “I have grown to appreciate his fine Christian character and love for the Lord.”

Then, in an email that Pastor Jaquith sent to a Westgate Baptist Church member and then shared with me, he wrote, “Another positive aspect [of our trip to Mongolia] was the ordination examination and then formal church service following that, for Ganpurev.  He and his family are so solidly prepared.” What better recommendations can one ask for than these?

Based on their recommendation to Faith Baptist Church, the church voted to ordain Ganpurev, recognizing God’s call on his life to the ministry. I have been training Ganpurev for the past several years to prepare him for this momentous task. But it has only been in the past year that Ganpurev has recognized God’s call on his life to be the pastor of Faith Baptist Church.

I am looking forward, in the coming months, to gradually transferring the leadership of Faith Baptist Church into Ganpurev’s capable hands. This spring, I am teaching a Bible institute class on the life of Christ and further equipping the believers to preach Christ to their family and friends. Ganpurev and I are also working on revising the current church constitution, which is based on a Baptist church model from American to fit a Baptist church model for Mongolia. I am also launching a renewed effort to start evangelistic Bible studies in Mongolian’s homes.

Your prayers have been an important part of our ministry in Mongolia. Because you pray, you too share in the joy of seeing a Mongolian man ordained to the ministry. Someday, you will meet these precious believers in heaven.

Weekly update

One of the many joys of Christian service is watching young Christians grow to be mature Christians. It does not happen overnight; sometimes it seems as if our Christian brothers and sisters are going backward; but the work that God begins in each of His children will continue until the day that we see Christ.

Ganpurev mentioned as he talked to me this week that there have been times when he felt that he needed to be encouraged. He has noticed that at those times he has received encouragement from the Lord. I told him that I was happy to hear that because he needs to be encouraged for the church's sake. That is, the young, immature Christians of Faith Baptist Church are looking to him for encouragement and spiritual strength. He needs to find his strength in the Lord so that he can strengthen them. Please pray for Ganpurev's continuing growth.

Kristie and I leave for Israel next week. (I will be participating in two missions conferences before then.) Please pray for good health and strength. I see my trip to Israel as a chance to take many, many pictures to show to our Mongolians after I return. I have discovered when I am on a trip that I can either pay attention to the trip or pay attention to taking pictures. My trip to Israel will be my first experience as a photojournalist.

Sunday update

I know from looking at my previous posts that it has been a while since I posted. Maybe this week will be different. I had set aside last week to focus on some Bible translation that I had committed to finish before my furlough begins in November. Instead a plethora of unimportant but urgent items demanded my attention. One fellow had trouble at work and needed advice and help. Our bathtub developed cracks that were leaking. And another fellow kept calling to ask for money. I never did get to spend the time that I wanted on translation. Maybe another week; it won't be this week.

There have been some minor victories to report from this previous week. The young couples that have been meeting to study the Bible continue to meet. They continue to be eager to look into God's word and to apply it to their lives.

Ganpurev was headed to the countryside to attend a wedding. I know that many of his relatives wanted to leave on Friday night or Saturday morning. However, Ganpurev told them that he could not leave until Sunday after the Mongolian service. I was proud of Ganpurev for taking such a stand. Many other Mongolians would have just bowed to their relatives' wishes.

Ganaa was back to church on Sunday. She told Kristie that her husband is "acting like a human being" now. He needs to be acting like a Christian. Continue to pray for peace in that family.

Manlai's wedding

About two months ago, Ganpurev told me that he would need some time off to travel to the countryside in October because his nephew was having a wedding. I thought little of it; his nephew is in his early 20's and has already served his time in the military. It was about time that he got married.

Last week, Ganpurev told me that Manlai was still looking for a bride. I was surprised and told Ganpurev so. "I though Manlai was having a wedding. How can he be having a wedding if he isn't getting married."

Ganpurev explained it to me this way. To countryside Mongolians there are usually two things that happen at a wedding which is called хурим in Mongolian. The first is that two people get married. However, at the same time the groom's family gives him a ger for him to live in with his new wife.

It seems that Manlai doesn't have a girlfriend, but his father has a ger prepared for him. Another relative was getting married nearby at the same time. So Manlai's father thought it would be handy to have both weddings at the same time. After all, the ger is ready and wasting away in storage.

So whether there is a bride or not, there will be a wedding for Manlai in October. Manlai seems convinced that he'll find someone to marry him in the next few weeks. I hope he does.

Report from my absence

My preaching trip to Hatgal was an opportunity to see how the arrangements for church ministry would work in my absence. Based on my assessment of the effectiveness of various Mongolians during my absence, I planned to make some final decisions who does what during my furlough.

I am pleased to report that things ran quite smoothly in my absence.

There are several ministries that need to be covered whenever I am gone. One is the preaching on Sunday mornings, another is the singing, and a third is the day-to-day help and counseling that I give.

Because Ganpurev already preaches every Sunday, I was searching for a second person to cover my preaching opportunities in my absence. One Sunday was covered by Bilgay, the other Sunday was Bill preaching in English with Bilgay translating. Both did just fine, although Bilgay was peppered with aggressive questions after the end of his message. Ganpurev did quite well in addressing the questions. While the questions themselves were good questions, the manner and timing of the questions was unbiblical. I dealt with the member who asked the questions at an inappropriate time and in an inappropriate manner. However, it is a reminder that in my absence there could be interesting interruptions unless strong leadership and a biblical approach to Biblical study obviates them. I think Ganpurev is ready in this regard though I am not sure about Bilgay.

In my absence Dashka led the singing. Although his wife's spiritual and physical condition is dangerous (or perhaps because of it), spiritually Dashka has been growing rapidly during the past few months. It is exciting to see it. However, his wife's poor health limits his involvement at the present time and will limit it until his wife's health situation is resolved.

As for visiting, day-to-day help and counseling, and direction of the church's ministries, Bill and Ganpurev working together did an excellent job while I was away. I feel very confident that they are prepared to guide Faith Baptist Church in my absence.

Continue to pray for spiritual growth especially in the men of the church and for laborers. We know that our goal is to leave behind a Mongolian church completely self-sustaining and led by Mongolian men. Our furlough will be an opportunity for these men to stretch their wings, so to speak, and reach new heights in service and struggles.

Sunday update

It has been a hard week. (Mongolians consider Sunday to be the last day of the week and Monday to be the first day of the week.) I came to Sunday morning after a long Saturday - two trips to the airport and an emotional, multi-hour meeting - wondering how I was going to make it through a Sunday.

But God blessed with grace and energy. We had 27 Mongolians, and with the return of the Pattersons there were another 13 Americans for a total of 40 people at the morning service. Both Ganpurev's preaching and and mine went very well. It seemed evident to me that the Holy Spirit was helping us.

In the evening we had 36 which is almost double the recent attendance numbers. There were quite a few visitors, including several people who had flown to Mongolia to celebrate Tsagaan Sar with their families. Bill Patterson's preaching was a blessing to me personally.

Thank you for your prayers. Despite my lack of human energy, God provided the strength and language ability needed. There are still many pressures in this coming week, and the missionaries in Mongolia continue to need your prayers.

Tsagaan Sar starts Wednesday which means lots and lots of visits to Mongolians' homes. There should be more posts than normal in this coming week as I blog about our Tsagaan Sar experiences.

A couple of people in the hospital

It has been quite a day. One member of our church Byambaa has a thyroid problem that the doctors are telling her can only be solved by having her thyroid completely removed. At the church service on Sunday she asked us to pray for her because she was planning to see the doctor today (Monday).

She sent me an SMS this morning telling me that the doctor had admitted her to the hospital. She is facing five days of treatment (exactly what kind of treatment I cannot say) followed by surgery to remove her thyroid. I know of the difficulties of associated with having one's thyroid removed. However, the Mongolians doctors are telling her that she has no other choice.

So Ganpurev helped her get her children to her father's place so he can watch his grandchildren for a few days.

When Ganpurev returned he told me that he was not feeling well: something in his abdomen was bothering him. We went to a prayer meeting together. Afterwards, he started to talk about seeing a doctor about his abdominal pain. Because he very rarely sees a doctor, I know that something serious must be bothering him. Ganpurev said that he thought it was his appendix. So I took him to the doctor.

The doctor looked at him, gave a couple of tests, and determined he had serious appendicitis. As of the writing of this blog entry, he has already had his appendectomy and seems to be recovering nicely. I'll probably visit him this coming week. Please remember both Ganpurev and Byambaa in your prayers as one recovers from surgery and the other prepares for it.

Pictures of Mongolian Christians

I was recently asked for some pictures of people who have been saved through our ministry. I decided to go ahead and post these pictures for those of you who frequent this blog.

Sunday update

We had a lower attendance than normal this week which was unfortunate because Ganpurev did a good job preaching from Psalm 100. He worked the news of the week about the Mongolian judoka who won Mongolia's first ever gold medal. So he got everyone's attention right from the beginning.

I was even more impressed with Ganpurev's preaching because he did all his preparation by himself this week. Usually we spend several hours each week preparing his sermon together. But I was traveling this last week and when I asked him if he was ready to preach, he said he was.

Please continue to pray for Ganpurev as he prepares sermons each week. So far he has not shown an interest in taking the role as pastor of this church. Pray that he would be open to God's leading. I don't know what God has planned for him, but I have been praying for Mongolian men to lead this church.

Sunday update

This past Sunday was an interesting one for me personally. Ganpurev preached from Psalm 23. Now I have heard many sermons from Psalm 23, but I have never heard a sermon from Psalm 23 preached by a true shepherd. Ganpurev has not read books about shepherds and sheep; he has been a shepherd. It was very interesting for me to hear a shepherd preach on Psalm 23.

Mongolians are easily offended when they are compared to sheep because they know how stupid and defenseless sheep are. You can say, "All we like sheep have gone astray," and emphasize "like sheep." But the unregenerate Mongolian hears, "All we like stupid and defenseless animals have gone astray." The end of that statement just reinforces in the Mongolian's mind the first part of that statement. He thinks, "Of course they've [he does not want to admit this about himself so ...] of course they've gone astray - they're stupid animals." You see a Mongolian knows that a good part of a shepherd's time is spent trying to find lost animals. It is a frustrating task because the animals have become lost through their own stupidity.

So I followed Ganpurev's lesson eagerly as he explained the roles of a shepherd and how they matched the roles of our Great Shepherd, Jesus Christ. His explanation of sheep and our resemblance to sheep was also fascinating. He did an good job of using the sheep illustration to work in man's need for a Savior.

For those of your wondering about attendance we had nine Mongolian adults this past Sunday which is a down day for us. One member was in the hospital with her son, another told me that family matters would keep him from attending.

Please keep praying for Ganpurev as he grows in his ability to preach.

Missions quote

I read the following quote recently in an e-mail that Dr. Cummins of Baptist World Mission send out in his "weekly epistle."

It is an irony that the greatest part of Adoniram’s time was spent labouring in the study when the great love of his life was preaching. He was increasingly frustrated by a chronic lung complaint, whereby any exertion of his voice led to dangerous spitting of blood. Whenever opportunity arose due to a break in the translation work, and when his health allowed, Adoniram revelled in village evangelism. But one of his cherished convictions was that the indigenous workers were ultimately far more effective than foreign missionaries, and he had the joy of training and using Burmese preachers and evangelists.

I have been working closely with Ganpurev training him in the study of the Bible and the preparation of Bible lessons and sermons. It is a joy to see him study with such diligence and to watch as the Holy Spirit illuminates his mind in ways that I never could. As you pray, please remember to pray for the nationals to have the vision and preparation to lead Mongolian churches into the future.

An evening with Ankhaa

On a hillside overlooking a thin trickle that passes for a river in Mongolia sit a variety of small brick homes, wooden shacks, Mongolian felt tents, and a diverse assortment of other structures that constitute Mongolian ger districts. Dividing the hillsides and river valley into a patch work of properties are fences mostly of rough wood. Each fence encloses an area called a hashaa. These hashaa's rarely include just one family. Most hold several tents or shacks and each tent or shack may house a family or more. Within Ganpurev's hashaa (the fence around his property) is Ganpurev's small house and Ankhaa's ger.

Ankhaa is Ganpurev's nephew. About a year and a half ago he was married. The first year of marriage Ankhaa and his wife lived in the countryside and only moved to the city this last summer. When he moved to the city his dad told him to pitch his ger in Ganpurev's hashaa. Ganpurev immediately saw it as an opportunity to be a witness to Ankhaa and told Ankhaa's father as much in his summer visit to the countryside.

Soon after Ankhaa arrived in town, I met him at Ganpurev's place. Ankhaa has spent several weeks off and on in the countryside with his father and mother. It is shaping up to be a hard winter in the Mongolian countryside. A very dry summer left behind drought conditions on the steppe. Then an infestation of rats (in some parts) killed off much of the grass that the animals need to survive the winter. (The rats eat the roots which kills the grasses). One consequence of these conditions is that Ankhaa has been in the countryside helping his father and mother move to another part of the country for the winter.

Ganpurev has taken many opportunities to preach Jesus Christ to Ankhaa, his wife Otgoo, and his wife's younger sister who lives at their ger some of the time. Ankhaa has been eager to hear and seems to be understanding. His wife Otgoo comes from a very Buddhist family and is hesitant to listen and is sometimes antagonistic.

A prior engagement kept me from reaching the hashaa that they share until after 9 on Friday night. Last night when I went for a visit, Ganpurev and I spent over an hour talking with Ankhaa about the Creator God, sin, righteousness in Jesus Christ, our Savior's death on the cross in our place, and other Biblical topics. Actually, Ganpurev did most of the talking. It is so thrilling to see Mongolians speaking about the Truth to other Mongolians because, in the end, it will be Mongolians and not foreigners that will effectively evangelize their country.

Please continue to pray for Ankhaa and his wife. I would love for them to make professions of faith together and grow together as Christians. I have already told Ganpurev that should they be saved, I want him to work to disciple them. Ankhaa and Otgoo are expecting their first child in February. Would it not be fantastic to see this young couple saved, growing, and raising their children to serve the God of the ends of the earth?! Please pray with me to this end.

Lunar New Year - Day Seven

The invitations for Lunar New Year visits just kept coming. I think we are finally done having completed two more visits today to make thirteen visits in all. I think I am tired of eating buuz, drinking milk tea, and trying to make small talk in Mongolian for two hours.

However, all the hours spent at Mongolians homes in the past week have not been wasted. During the Lunar New Year's celebrations we have had the opportunity to be in several homes where we would not be expected to be the rest of the year. I also had several opportunities to be a witness for Jesus Christ.

There is also exciting news about Ganpurev. He and his family went to the countryside to be with Ganpurev's relatives this past week. Two interesting things came out of this. First, Ganpurev has come to be known among his relatives as the person whose God does not allow him to drink alcohol. It is an interesting appellation. It also means that he is no longer under so much pressure to drink.

Secondly, he had the opportunity to witness to several brothers. At first, one was quite antagonistic to hearing about Ganpurev's God because he realizes that the true God is a threat to his gods. But by the end of the hours long conversation, he seemed to be questioning his long-held beliefs. For those of who praying for Mongolian men by name the two brothers are Byasaa (whom I mentioned hearing about God's salvation when he was in UB in January) and Ulzeet.

It is exciting for me to see my sons in the faith go out and be a witness to others without my help. I have been thinking about the possibility that Ganpurev and I might travel to the countryside several times a year to continue witnessing to his family.

Sunday update

We had a good turnout at the meeting this past Sunday morning. In fact, we had the best turnout of adults since we returned, nine Mongolian adults came. That may not seem like a lot, but to me that's a crowd. Buren was there for the first time since I returned from the States. Although I've visited him, he had not been to our meetings on Sunday before this one.

In another first, we actually had a Mongolian preach on Sunday. Ganpurev was our first speaker. I know it won't be the last time. When I first asked Ganpurev to prepare, he seemed hesitant. I've spend some time the last several weeks helping him to prepare. He did a respectable job. Of course, it was his first time and he left many things unsaid that I would have said; but he didn't say anything wrong. And of course, he spoke Mongolian much better than I did. I enjoyed listening to him. He spoke about trials and temptations from James 1. I'm encouraged and hope that Ganpurev is encouraged. Keep praying for him.

Ganpurev's wife Ulzee passed out on the way home Sunday afternoon. So he had an immediate opportunity to practice what he preached about trials. As amazing as it sounds, I don't think Ulzee's problem is serious. She went to see a doctor today, I understand. If it's anything serious, I'll post about it soon.