Quote of the week

"Rome was not built in a day, nor will the work of building up a strong, well-instructed body of Lisu Christians in the Tengyueh district be the work of a day either … God has brought me to the point of being willing for it to be in His time as well as in His way. I am willing … not to see the fullness of blessing in my lifetime." – James O. Fraser

I talked to a young man recently who had been into the hill regions of China recently. He mentioned that he had held in his hands the song books that the Lisu people were using. Written in those song books was the name "James Fraser." These were the songs that Mr. Fraser had translated for the Lisu people to sing. Today almost a century later, they still use those books.

It is amazing to think that the efforts of Christian missionaries long ago still have an impact today.

Serving his own generation

Outer Mongolia is littered with the hopes and dreams of missionaries. That is not to say that starting a church in Mongolia is hard. Literally, thousands of churches have been planted ... and perhaps almost as many have disappeared since Mongolia opened up to the Gospel 18 years ago. Every so often a new church will pop up, grow to include huge numbers of Mongolians, and as almost as quickly vanish.

When Kristie and first came in July 1997, the traveler we were with had already visited Mongolia in 1995. Before we arrived in Mongolia he told us he knew of a church where hundreds of Mongolian believers met every Sunday. As soon as we arrived in Ulan Bator, he began to call around trying to find out where the church was currently meeting. In the two years since he visited the church had dissolved completely and no longer met anywhere.

A journalist who first visited Mongolia in 1989 wrote about his second visit: "When I came back to Mongolia in May 1991, I rented out a flat, as the hotel was full of evangelists, religious and economic." I have talked to a lady who came in that first wave and her statement was that she is one of the very few left in Mongolia.

Others will tell you that most of what passes for church growth is just Mongolians leaving one dying church to attend the newest and greatest church. The result has been a few huge mega-churches that meet in public auditoriums, dance halls, and theaters. There is a reason that those churches meet in entertainment venues: it is the best way for them to showcase their style of "worship service."

For independent Baptist missionaries in Mongolia, service has been short. I did an informal survey of all the independent, Baptist missionaries that I have met in Mongolia. The average length of time that they stay in Mongolia is less than six years. Almost half of all the independent Baptist missionaries who have come to Mongolia have already left permanently. I personally have worked with four different families since my church planting work started five years ago.

There are various reasons that missionaries leave Mongolia. Sometimes it is health. Several missionaries came to Mongolia with a five or six year plan and stuck to it. More than one missionary just went back to the States. The number of churches that they left behind can be counted on one hand.

I certainly do not want to imply that every missionary who left Mongolia permanently did so outside of God's will. I have no doubt that some of us missionaries God has moved on to other harvest fields. But I think it is significant to realize that many missionaries who come to Mongolia do not stay for a length of time that would allow them to learn the language, plant a church, and see it reach a point of spiritual stability.

Some of the missionaries I knew well enough to know why they left; in many cases I can only guess at what motivated them to leave. However, I can tell you what I think: as missionaries we can look at our circumstances, we can look at our abilities, we can look at our frailties, and we can be disheartened. There are many times that I have wondered why God called me to work in Mongolia. Certainly, there must be people with better leadership abilities, people with better linguistic abilities, people with better organizational abilities, people with more energy than I have who could do a "better" work for God in Mongolia … and then I remember: God did not call that other person to Mongolia. God called me.

If one believes in God's sovereignty - and I do! - than wherever God's will takes one, he can agree with Mordecai's sentiments when he asked Esther rhetorically, "Who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such as time as this?" God places people where He needs them in His timing.

To question whether God called the right person to Mongolia or not is to question the wisdom of God. Frankly, many times I ask that question with a good conscience while wishing for God's sake that He had a better servant through whom to work. But there are other times when I have asked whether God called the right person to Mongolia because I wanted to quit, I wanted the pain to stop, I wanted the frustration to go away, I wanted to be somewhere else, I wanted to be part of a thriving ministry rather than a ministry that seemed to only be surviving. Such an attitude is wrong. It is a reminder that I am wandering away from God. A truly Spirit-filled Christian will not experience the lack of peace and joy that causes one to question his Master's will.

There are two attitudes that I have come to recognize whenever I question God's choice of me as a missionary. The first is the wrong-hearted questioning. It goes something like this:

"God, I'm tired of all this; You have obviously called the wrong type of person; therefore, with or without your permission, I'm going to move on to another ministry in which I feel more comfortable."

The other attitude that I have come to recognize may come from the right heart but is certainly wrong-headed. It sounds something like this:

"God, You could have found someone better than me and accomplished a lot more work through him."

I have recognized a few key Biblical truths that I remind myself of whenever I question God's wisdom in calling me to Mongolia.

1. God in His infinite wisdom called me to Mongolia. I should not think that I was a "bottom of the barrel" pick—so to speak. It was not that God really wanted to call someone more qualified but could not find anyone else; therefore, in His desperation (is God ever desperate?) He called me.
2. God was uniquely preparing me for this ministry in Mongolia since before I was born (Jeremiah 1:5).
   
3. If I am discouraged, disheartened, or disabled by some obstacle, I can identify the source and ask God for help. But there is no room in the Christian life for discouragement (dismay), disheartened attitudes, or refusing to go forward because the obstacles to God's will seem insurmountable. We often read "dismay" in Joshua 1:9 and say, "I'm not dismayed merely discouraged," when frankly, those two words are synonymous. As one wise Christian once said, "Those who take responsibility surrender the luxury of being discouraged or depressed."

So where does this leave us? "David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God …" God appoints each of us a time and place for service. Then He expects that each one of us will use that opportunity that He has granted us for His honor and His glory.

Hospitality

One of the requirements for a man who desires the office of a bishop is that he be given to hospitality. For this reason alone we seek to have Mongolians come to our home and share our meals with us.

But also many missionaries have found valuable opportunities to minister by inviting people over to their homes. In the book Goforth of China it is recorded that when the Goforths hosted an open house for their Chinese neighbors over 2,000 men and women passed through in one day. Of course, they did not feed them all; but think of 2,000 veritable strangers passing through your home in one day!

We have never had that kind of interest in our home, but yesterday we had nine Mongolians visit our home starting in the morning and finishing up after dinner which we shared with five of them. Most of those who visited were uninvited though not unwelcome guests. It allows Mongolians to see how Christians live. We welcome these opportunities to minister in a casual and impromptu way.

"God's best gifts are not in things but in opportunities."

Benjamin Franklin's Investment

When Benjamin Franklin died in 1790, his estate was valued at about $250,000; in today's dollars, he was a multimillionaire. In a codicil to his will Franklin wrote that he wanted "to be useful even after my death if possible." He then bequeathed 1,000 pounds to both Boston, Massachusetts and to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with the instructions that from that money loans were to be given to entrepreneurs of good standing and moral character. The low interest loans were intended to give these young people a start in business. The interest would collect over the years and expand the program.

Benjamin Franklin calculated that by 1890, 100,000 pounds could be subtracted from the funds and spent on various transportation projects, and there would still be enough funds to continue the loans to entrepreneurs. So he directed that one hundred years after his death 100,000 pounds was to be taken from each fund and used on such things as roads and bridges.

He must have had great faith in American character and the American system of government that he helped found because he further directed that after 200 years the remaining monies in the trust funds were to be divided between Boston, Philadelphia, and the states of Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. So in 1990, a total of 6.5 million dollars was divided between these four governments. All from an investment of 2,000 pounds.

We too are investing our lives. Only eternity will show the results of the investment that we have made for Jesus Christ. Only then will we watch with agony the wood, hay, and stubble burn and watch with amazement the building that God has made of our gold, silver, and precious stones.

So many have invested in me over the years that, excepting my parents, it would be foolish for me to mention them all. But I have been conscious of their efforts and wish to take their investments in me and re-invest it in others.

When it comes to missions, I am reminded of something Nate Saint, the famous missionary killed along with Jim Elliot by Auca Indians in the jungles of Ecuador. He once said, "People who don’t know the Lord ask why in the world we waste our lives as missionaries. They forget that they too are expending their lives … and when the bubble has burst they will have nothing of eternal significance to show for the years they have wasted." To some, it may seem as if the missionary is wasting his life. But to those whose eternity has been changed by the arrival of a preacher of righteousness, that life certainly does not seem wasted.

Just as Benjamin Franklin, we can invest for the future or allow our lives to be frittered away on so many unimportant things. Except that unlike Benjamin Franklin our investment will not only continue to for several hundred years, our investments by God's grace will continue forever. So how about you? What on earth are you doing for heaven's sake?

Investing in the future

"Invest your life in something that will outlive you – PEOPLE!" – Ron Brooks

"The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it." – William James

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." – Jim Elliot

These three quotes all share a similar idea: there is a way to invest in the future that always yields good returns. Many Americans seem to be very eager to find the highest return for their money. Stocks, mutual funds, bonds - all these tempt Americans with talk of high returns. Then there are the get-rich-quick schemes that threaten to inundate people's e-mail boxes. Yes, too many Americans are obsessed with finding an investment that will allow them to get rich while doing very little.

But there is a better way to invest. It is a venture that promises good returns. It is people. The people whom we lead to our Savior will be eternally grateful for our witness. The people whom we disciple will ultimately disciple others who will ultimately disciple others until the returns in eternity are beyond our comprehension.

Besides, what could be more important than people. We know that our gold will perish, our buildings will eventually collapse, our clothing will wear out, and one day all those things will seem so unimportant. But people - this is one of the few things that will continue on into eternity. What better way to invest our lives!