Teaching & preaching

Because I really enjoy teaching I occasionally take an offer to teach an English class at a Mongolian public school. I always try to help teachers that I know. Yesterday I had an opportunity to help a English language teacher who regularly attends on Sunday night.

Teaching religion at a Mongolian public school is illegal which is just as well since the most likely religion to be taught at a Mongolian public school is a false one. However, during my hour long class with these students, I was able to tell them in a five minute monologue about my Father. After all, I was not teaching religion, just providing a testimony. Below our the students who heard it.

Weekly prayer update

Welcome to 2009! We have had a quick start to the year. That is, usually this time of year is a little slower. Many people are in school, it is so cold outside that people like to stay inside, and people are busy preparing for the lunar new year celebrations.

However, this year is different. Bill Patterson who has been leading the English language church service is away from Mongolia organizing or attending multiple conferences in Mexico and Argentina. That means that I have been taking the primary responsibility for that ministry.

Then last week, Ganpurev had an emergency appendectomy. He has been such a blessing visiting people, training people, and helping with various aspects of the ministry here. I did not realize how much I would miss him until now when he is convalescing.  He still tries to help for which I am grateful. But he will have limited usefulness for the next several weeks.

Besides visiting Ganpurev, Kristie and I have also visited Byambaa several times in the hospital in the last week. She had most of her thyroid taken out. I do not understand all the reasons but know that the Mongolian doctors insisted that she had to have her thyroid removed. Her husband Mandaa still needs to be saved. I have been praying that God would use his wife's illness to lead him to our Savior. However, when I mentioned believing in Jesus to him again, he was rather amused, not at all the the response I would have liked.

Thank you for your prayers. Pray for me to have wisdom to prioritize my time.

You want to speak about Jesus Christ? ... oops, I'm busy

I have discovered that there are some folks in Mongolia who see me as an English translator who is available to help them whenever they need some help. They only come over when they need something translated and never want to talk about the Bible, sin, or our Savior.

Here's a transcript of the SMS messages (without editing) that I recently exchanged with one of these folks.

Mongolian: "Can I visit to house today around 7:00 pm. I have a special quest for you."

Me: "Yep, please come. We'll talk about Jesus. Will you come?"

Mongolian: "I am so sorry! May be I can't talk with you about Jesus. I have another job that must be solved immediately. Are you sure?"

Me: "I must talk about Jesus tonight. Will you come?"

The Mongolian then called me to talk in Mongolian. "Why do you have to talk about Jesus?" he asked.

I explained to him that my desire is to talk about Jesus and that I am very busy. If he just wants help with translation then I am too busy for that. If he wants to talk about Jesus, I will make time to meet him.

In the end, he declined to come.

It is a reminder that we all have priorities. For some, maybe a job or some English translation or a friend is the most important thing. For me, meeting spiritual needs is most important. I really must work to be certain that I do not make other people's priorities my priorities. Instead I must stay focused on what is eternally important. It is always a struggle as a missionary. We need your prayers as we prioritize our time and choose the best things over the good things.

Go to a seminar! Become a Christian!

This blog's title is intended to be ironic. I do not believe that simply attending a seminar makes one a Christian. The reason for the title will become clear as you read on.

Through a voluntary English teaching opportunity, I met Naranchimeg who spent three years studying in Australia for a Master's Degree in Health Administration. Upon returning to Mongolia, Nara (nickname) could not find a job in health administration so she took a job as an English teacher at the local school where I met her.

Several weeks ago when talking about Christianity, she said that her son attends a church led by a Korean. While in Australia, she said that she and her son attended church regularly. Since returning to Mongolia she has not been attending church.

She came at my invitation to our church service on Resurrection Sunday and heard the Gospel. Last week she told me that she had become a Christian.

"Really," I responded, "How did you become a Christian?"

"I attended a seminar on Saturday at my son's church. At the end of the seminar they said that if we wanted to become Christians we should sign a form. I signed the form and am now a Christian. Is that how one becomes a Christian?" she asked me.

To which I responded, "A Christian has a relationship with God."

"I pray," she interrupted after which a class ended our conversation. I invited her to my home on Thursday to meet my family and join us for dinner. Although she said that she would come, she ended up canceling.

However, she came to our service for a second time on Sunday and brought a fellow teacher, Bysaa. After the service she asked a question about the nature of sin that indicated to me that she does not understand the Biblical seriousness of sin. She said that people have a black part and a white part. Taking everyone to Isaiah 64, I pointed out that everyone righteousnesses are as filthy rags. She left rather quickly after the service, but God willing we will meet again later this week when I teach English again.

She seems to be interested in what the Bible teaches. Please pray for her salvation.

Mongolians preaching Christ to other Mongolians

Because our goal is to leave behind an indigenous, independent, self-replicating church in Mongolia, it is always a blessing to hear of our Mongolians witnessing to other Mongolians. While talking with Ganpurev I was encouraged to hear that he was speaking freely about Jesus Christ with those with whom he comes into contact.

Recently, Ganpurev's mother came to the city for some medical treatment. He has been witnessing to his mother but like many Mongolians she is hearing what he is saying through her Buddhist filter. Still though he was not discouraged, I urged him to keep telling his mother about our Savior.

Also, when Ankhaa came over to Ganpurev's house one evening this week, Ganpurev said, "Let's study the Bible together." To which Ankhaa eagerly agreed. Then they looked together at our Savior in Isaiah 53. The phrase in that chapter, "All we like sheep have gone astray" has significant meaning for Mongolian herdsmen who spend much of their time looking for stray animals including sheep. For a Mongolian to admit that he is a straying sheep, straying from a loving Shepherd-Savior shows a deep sense of humility and repentance.

I know too that Ganpurev is not the only Mongolian to witness to others: in recent weeks, several others have also told Kristie or me stories about witnessing to relatives. Please pray that these Mongolians would quickly see fruit from their labors and would be encouraged to continue to preach Christ to others. My goal is to prepare them to always be ready to give an answer to those who ask them the reason for their hope and indeed to encourage them to look for opportunities to speak for their Savior to family, friends, and strangers.

A chance to witness to Bayarmaa

Regular readers of this blog know about Gustavo, the Cuban man who was recently saved. His wife Bayarmaa is not yet a Christian though she is interested. On Monday evening, Gustavo and Bayarmaa came to our house and shared dinner with us. Gustavo loves to talk even though his English is still ... well, let's just say that he still has lots of room for improvement. When everyone else had finished eating, Gustavo had just barely started because he could not stop talking long enough to eat.

That made it difficult to speak with his wife Bayarmaa about Jesus Christ. She speaks some English and even more Spanish, but because she is a Mongolian obviously her best language is Mongolian. Since Gustavo cannot speak Mongolian very well, it is difficult to talk to his wife in Mongolian, especially when he does not want to quit speaking English.

Because one of the most important aspects of my marriage to me is vibrant and free communication, this idea of two people marrying who don't speak each other's language well is very intriguing to me. It seems to me that Gustavo and Bayarmaa perhaps do not understand each other as well as Gustavo thinks that they do. One evidence of this is that Gustavo keeps insisting in English that Bayarmaa believes in Jesus; however, when Bayarmaa and I talk in Mongolian she keeps expressing doubts and asking questions that lead me to believe that she is not certain whether to put her complete faith in Jesus Christ or to continue to trust the Buddhist gods whom she grew up worshipping.

Please continue to pray for Bayarmaa's salvation and Gustavo's spiritual growth. Any day now, Gustavo's Spanish Bible should arrive from the United States. Bayarmaa will have the opportunity this weekend to meet with some of the ladies of the church for a Women's Day party: the men will be serving the women. I anticipate that some of our ladies will have another chance to witness to Bayarmaa.

Sunday update

Sunday was the third day of Tsagaan Sar; last year on the Sunday during Tsagaan Sar, we had three Mongolians in attendance. This year that number more than doubled to eight Mongolians along with the one Cuban that was saved - read about that in the blog entry below.

After the church service, my family went with Tsendee to visit Mandaa's house. We had a good visit; Mandaa talks a little more each time. He should have some more free time after Tsagaan Sar. I am hoping to have a chance to witness more to him in the coming weeks. Please pray for his salvation.

There was one thing of particular interest to us that was said during our visit. Kristie and Ulzee have been teaching Bayambaa the Bible in her home, training her to be a disciple of Jesus Christ and live according to His commands. One of the topics that they taught was raising children. Like all children, Mandaa & Bayambaa's son Ermune can be quite undisciplined. Bayambaa has been working to utilize the principles of God's Word to teach her son obedience and respect. Yesterday, Bayambaa said, "Ermune obeys me, but he doesn't obey his father." To Kristie and me, it seems that God is blessing obedience to His Word.

But would it not be even better if both Mandaa and Bayambaa worked together to raise their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord? Please continue to pray for Mandaa's salvation.

A visit with Bob

Two years ago about this time I wrote to my wife, "Bob and I had the best discussion about God and the Bible that I can ever remember." Well, we have come a long way since then; and frankly, we are not moving in the right direction.

Monday night I went to visit Bob and talk with him about the Savior. Bob has a frustrating habit of taking whatever is said and turning it in the other direction. Currently, he insists that he is trying to understand where "religion" came from. I briefly went over basic Biblical truths with him; however, he already has heard most of what has been said.

I recently studied II Peter and a phrase from the 3rd chapter reminds me of Bob: "for this they willingly are ignorant of ..." Bob certainly chooses to ignore the truth. But there are reasons that I continue to speak to him about Jesus Christ.

First, God's love for me was not overcome by my personal belligerence and obstinacy. Therefore, I should not let Bob's belligerence and obstinacy decrease my love for one the God has made.

Second, I have great compassion for Bob's wife Ganaa and the difficulties that she faces in her marriage. To some degree, my wife and I can encourage her and alleviate some of the burdens that she faces. But the ultimate answer to her marriage woes is for her husband to be saved and for both of them to work together making their marriage over according to God's plan.

Third, I believe that Bob has an eternal soul that will spend eternity in either heaven or hell. I cannot see him and not want to tell him about Jesus Who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

I was encouraged when an American man recently wrote me to tell me that he would be fasting and praying for the salvation of Mongolian men. Those of you who are praying, keep it up. We know that God is not willing for any to perish, but rather desires that all would come to repentance.

Prayer update

Monday night I visited Ganzorig's house. Ganzorig is older than me and works as a carpenter. He fell down a flight of stairs at work and severely injured his leg. The doctor who examined it said that nothing was broken but the injury was severe enough that he has been off of work for several days and does not anticipate going back for several days more. In Mongolia where there is no workman's comp insurance such a break from work without pay most likely means the injury is serious. Although I have met him before at other's homes, I had never had a chance to witness to him. It was to witness to him that I visited. As he talked he asked (unusually for Mongolians), "Did you come to tell me something."

"Yes," I responded, "I came to tell you about Jesus." It was a great way to break the ice and start introducing him to my Savior. Given his reputation, I was concerned that he might be angry. (He once got into a knife fight with a friend of mine.) However, he listened without saying anything and took a Gospel tract that I offered him. I told him that I would be back to talk more with him about the tract, and he did not refuse. Please pray for the salvation of Mongolian men and that God would raise up Mongolian men to be leaders of the church here.

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.

The witness of a foreigner

Imagine with me that you are sitting at home one evening. You are in your comfort zone: you are in your own home, listening to your own music, surrounded by familiar surrounding and loving family. Then there is a knock at the door. It is a Japanese man and he wants to come in and talk with you. Except that he is not yet fluent in English. Would you let him in? Would you listen earnestly to what he had to say? I would not. I am too busy with my family, my ministry, and my friends to spend much time listening to someone from another culture who is still learning my heart language try to tell me something I have never heard about before.

It is the same way here in Mongolia, except we are the foreigners intruding into Mongolians’ comfortable lives. If it were not for the eternal consequences and the calling of the Holy Spirit, I would not be here trying to interrupt their lives.

I once heard a person equate witnessing with warning people that their house is on fire. That analogy breaks down rather quickly when we consider that if a person’s house is on fire, you can easily point out the fire to convince them of their need to escape. But how does one point out the fires of an eternal hell. It takes the work of the Holy Spirit to convince men that they are sinners in danger of eternal judgment. Then too, it usually takes the respect of the person whom you are trying to persuade.

I have found in Mongolia that few Mongolians are willing to listen to some foreigner about non-material things unless they have grown close enough to me to understand my love and concern for them. As one man put it, “No one cares how much you know [about the Bible] unless they know how much you care.” So we spend a large amount of time getting to know people here in Mongolia.

God has blessed us recently with the opportunity to get to know several neighbors much better. As you pray for us this week, please pray for the salvation of Vantchaa and Mongoo his wife and for the salvation of Javkhaa and Batmaa his wife. And if the Mongolian names are difficult for you, just pray for the Dean’s neighbors.

In other news, both Buren and Bob for whom you have all prayed for a long time along with me have been coming to our Sunday Bible studies. The last two weeks both of them have been there. Last weeks sermon about freedom from sin was a particularly pointed message about man’s need for Jesus Christ. Please continue to pray for their salvation.