Nicaragua (and thoughts on the Gospel…) – Part 5

[Note: I've completely erased this blog entry about 5 times and restarted again. I'm trying to work on being more concise. It's not easy for me...]

Perhaps my greatest concern with short-term mission trips is the tendency for them to become Christian vacations coupled with hit-and-run evangelism for the masses.

I’m not exactly sure how to work through the tension of the first half of this dilemma, either. On one hand I think it’s good (and important) for people to experience another culture and have the opportunity to see new sights. I really do think there can (and possibly should) be some room for that.

But when touring the city is given higher priority than engaging the streets, taking photos of the homeless is given greater emphasis than loving them, and dining at the indigenous restaurant is more important than sharing the bread of life…something is out of balance.

Fortunately, this was not an issue we had to face in Nicaragua. All the sight-seeing we did was in the midst of work! What a blessing. By the end of the week, I heard numerous people saying something along the lines of, “I know we spent all week at the market, but I don’t think I ever even stopped to look around. I was too busy looking for an available person to share the Gospel with!”

PRAISE GOD!!! What a mission-minded group! I am so thankful for such strong attitudes and intentional church members, and am proud to be a part of the Oak Grove Baptist family.

I think I’ll save my thoughts on the second half of the “short-term mission trip dilemma” for the next entry…

Nicaragua (and thoughts on the Gospel…) – Part 3

A Nicaragua highlight video (and a few more pics) can be found HERE, compliments of Daniel and Renee Miles.

Nicaragua (and thoughts on the Gospel…) – Part 2

Sharing the Gospel with others should be a natural overflow of the Christian’s heart, but that’s not always the case. In fact, for many of us…that’s far from reality. Last week we didn’t rebuild churches, feed the poor, hand out Bibles, or run any medical clinics (all of which are good means to an end). We shared the Good News. We told about Jesus. We preached Christ crucified.

But…

We didn’t always do it eloquently. Sometimes it was rough. Sometimes it was pathetic. And sometimes we desperately relied on our translators to bail us out. Through those experiences I think we all learned how to pray harder, trust in the Holy Spirit to empower us more, and (especially) our need to be able to communicate the Gospel in a clear and honest manner. Many people struggled with this. Some didn’t even know how to start.

Watching many church members have such a difficult times presenting the Gospel prompted much personal reflection. I began to ask myself why someone who has professed Christ as Lord for years is incapable of sharing that with others. Why is it that they cannot communicate such a simple message? What causes a lifelong Christian to freeze up when communicating a few simple truths?

[Enter the convicting work of the Holy Spirit.]

I then sensed the deep pride and depravity of my heart–as if I were better or more righteous. I shared the Gospel perhaps 60 times over the course of the week (maybe more or less). While I’d like to think of myself as someone who understands the Gospel and is comfortable communicating it to an unbeliever, I’m almost positive that I walked away from every single conversation realizing that I either underemphasized or completely neglected a different element–sometimes crucial element–of the Christian faith.

Me! The guy who loves the church, the Bible, and the good news of Christ (and who has studied “professionally” for the last 2 years) is completely capable of missing the basic message of our faith.

Me! The one who judges those who don’t share a “full” gospel.

Me! The one who balks at certain evangelistic methods and mocks their empty, incomplete, or inaccurate messages.

Sometimes I think I can sympathize with Paul when he writes in Romans 7:24 “O wretched man that I am!”

Communicating the Gospel well is imperative. I think we all left Nicaragua with a new spiritual fervor…which is great! Even more exciting is to see how many of us have gained a fresh understanding of the importance of being able to communicate the Gospel more effectively. Each of us was challenged. Each was stretched. Each was used by God. To him be the glory!

Nicaragua (and thoughts on the Gospel…) – Part 1

Wow, what a trip! It’s been about a week now since we made it back from Nicaragua, and it was certainly a memorable experience. I hardly know where to start in describing the whole week.

I will admit that short term mission trips always have a way of worrying me. By worrying, though, I’m not referring to the common anxieties felt during any international travel: adjusting to different cultures, working in extreme poverty, ministering through a language barrier, etc. What worries me is the realization that we, as Christians, haven taken upon ourselves the wonderful responsibility and task of communicating the Gospel to those who don’t know Christ. Praise God that this really isn’t a task we perform alone! Oak Grove Baptist Church sent 18 missionaries to Central America last week in faith and obedience, fully trusting that God would use this group to do his work in a mighty way. We had almost every age group recognized in our team–from 10 year-olds to the retired folk! And everything in between!

I left Nicaragua with two different thoughts. First, I was grateful for such a positive experience all of our church members had in being part of an international mission trip. Nearly 85% of the group had never been out of the country, and most rarely ever make it out of the state of North Carolina. So while taking a trip to Central America may not be too big of a deal for some churches or individuals…it was big time for us! Many people realized that traveling overseas is not an impossible task–it was definitely doable. We survived the language barrier (and even overcame it at times!), we enjoyed almost all of the food, we made it through customs, our airplane didn’t crash, no one was robbed, hardly anyone got sick. Praise God for such a trouble-free trip! Despite the lack of setbacks, though, we were definitely stretched, challenged, and worked over. Long, hot days were one aspect of that challenge, but I think another that everyone experienced in some form or fashion dealt directly with the objective of our mission: evangelism.

To be continued…

Photos all stolen from various sources (Daniel and Renee Miles, Melissa Peduzzi, etc.)

Nicaragua

We’re headed abroad!!!

In a little more than a month, Oak Grove will be sending 18 homegrown missionaries to Managua, Nicaragua to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. How exciting! I can’t say for sure, but I don’t think the church has ever taken an international mission trip…to the best of my knowledge. Either way, this group is excited! We’ve got all age groups represented and this will be the first international mission trip I’ve gone on since Brazil (5 years ago).

In the meantime, we’ve been learning about the Nicaraguan culture. We’ve been picking up a few Spanish phrases. We’ve been getting our vaccinations. We’ve been getting our passports. We’ve been exercising. And praying. And practicing evangelism. And all kinds of other edifying actions to help encourage, strengthen and pump up one another. What a trip this will be!

Please pray for us as we physically, mentally, and spiritually prepare for Nicaragua. I’ve mentioned a few specific requests below. Please join me in pray for:

1. The softening of hearts of the Nicaraguans we will encounter.
2. The physical condition of our team as we travel abroad.
3. The financial support to be provided so the trip is possible.
4. The leadership of the trip to have an abundance of wisdom.
5. The Gospel to be proclaimed faithfully and that many will respond in obedience!!!

The Greatest Commandment

Yesterday morning in Sunday School I began a new series with my youth that is focused on evangelism. The “intended goal” of the curriculum is for students to finish the series feeling more adequately prepared and inspired to share the Gospel with unbelievers. From the way everything went, I wholeheartedly expect this to be an exciting endeavor…but perhaps with a much different approach than the “intended goal” suggested.

We began with a discussion of Matthew 22:34-38 and explored how the Pharisees were attempting to entangle or trick Jesus by self-contradiction, yet they obviously didn’t realize who it was, in fact, that they were dealing with. Nonetheless, Jesus’ response helped set the perfect foundation for the commencement of this series on evangelism. We are commanded to love Him with all of our heart…with all of our soul…and with all of our mind. As we began to understand how our love manifests itself in different ways when pouring forth from the heart…or when rooted in our soul…or engaging our minds…we began to see the necessity to involve our entire bodies in the worship of God. It is not just an emotional commitment; it is not just a mental assent; it captures ever part of our lives and begins to redeem us in incredible ways.

This is the first time I’ve seen each of the youth so engaged in the teaching that they eagerly await real answers to sincere questions. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to work in all of our lives together as we continue to learn.

Next week we will begin to look at the Gospel itself. I’ve been learning a great deal in my own life over the last few months about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and how simple it is to confuse this Gospel with the institution of religion. My hopes are that in “teaching how to evangelize,” some of these students will begin to understand the Gospel for themselves. First things first, right?

And they all came a runnin’…

Well today was “homecoming” at the Grove…which in Southern Baptist life is much akin to either Christmas or Easter. It’s the time of year when the recalcitrant come out of the woodwork to fulfill their duty and prove to Granny and Gramps that they truly are born again believers. Regardless, it was my first homecoming at this church, and by far, the most enjoyable. After the service we partook in a delicious potluck meal. Everyone contributed…except for me (out of ignorance…which I felt a little guilty about)…and it was phenomenal. Fried chicken, turkey, ribs, roast beef, ham, homemade biscuits, macaroni, 12-layer cake, brownies, bean casseroles, pasta casseroles, vegetable casseroles, you name it…it was there.

Of course, I think the best part of the meal was the hand-squeezed lemonade. Evidently the story goes that each year on the second Sunday of September you’ll find the senior men of Oak Grove rolling up to the church promptly at 6:00am to faithfully follow through with tradition. I can’t even begin to describe how tasty this stuff was–and it was nearly impossible to get the exact recipe out of anyone!–but I was able to find out that over 10lbs of sugar and 330 lemons were used! That’s some strong juice! (If you ask me, they may have wanted to serve a little bit of it before the sermon to ensure everyone stayed awake…) Afterward I enjoyed a relaxing afternoon over at the Miles’ home listening to the finest “gee-tar picker” I know. A refreshing and musical siesta, perfect for any Sunday in “the Forest”…

Motorcycle Diaries

This evening I was able to do something that I haven’t done in quite some time: ride a motorcycle. Riding has been one of my (many) favorite hobbies in the last 3 years or so, and due to the kindness of Daniel Miles, I had the opportunity to revive many great memories tonight.

I spent most of my lunch break wrenching with Daniel on his recently purchased ‘81 Honda, just trying to get the thing running. After several battery jumps, running push-starts, and spark plug cleanings, we finally got her idling strong and ready to ride. I unfortunately had to get back to work and spent the rest of the afternoon doing a little bit of drywall repair and a whole lot of daydreaming. I really do enjoy having a job where I can just let my mind wander and my hands work. It’s very freeing and productive (for both me and my employer).

After I finished up work, I bicycled (another passion of mine) over to Daniel’s house and traded my two wheels for his–much faster–two wheels. I’d like to say that it was the most beautiful evening to hit the open road and that I cruised for hours through the winding trails of Wake County, but that would be a bit misleading. The weather was, in fact, terrible for riding. As soon as I pulled out of his driveway it started raining. And then it started pouring. But, to be honest, it really didn’t bother me. I rode through it willingly and joyfully, because it was just so nice to be able to experience such thrills again. After about 20 minutes I was completely soaked to the bone. And I mean completely. Because I didn’t want to go too far from home (in case the bike had any problems), I decided to head back to the apartment and let the storm pass. Before long the rain was gone, so I traveled up to the church where Daniel and Renee were getting their picture taken for the Oak Grove Baptist Church directory. As soon as they had finished, Daniel hopped on the back and together we did, in fact, cruise the winding roads of Wake County, passing a countless number of farms and other beautiful landscapes. We only put about 50 miles on the odometer tonight, but it was time well spent.

The rest of the evening involved making some minor modifications to the seat/luggage rack and repairing the master cylinder. Daniel actually let me keep the bike tonight so that I can go out riding tomorrow. Hopefully the weather will be better, as I’m hoping to register about 100 miles or so if I have time. There is still lots of studying to be done, of course (2 exams left!), but this may make for a wonderful distraction/study break tomorrow afternoon.

Below is a replica of Daniel’s new bike, a 1981 Honda CB750.

And here is a photo of my first motorcycle, a 1982 Suzuki GS300L. What a machine…