Week 5 - CPM part 2

I am now in my fifth week of training to go on the mission field. I have been meeting with regional leadership for the last two days, and I am learning a lot of things that relate specifically to what I will be doing in Mexico.

Last week I started to talk about church planting movements. The reason why CPMs are so effective at spreading the Gospel is that when churches are planted, the body of Christ is multiplied. New Christians are discipled based on obedience to the Bible, and they are taught to evangelize and disciple others. Basically, church planting results in the exponential increase of people being exposed to Jesus Christ, whereas traditional missionary methods only results in small numbers being added through the work of the missionary.

The number one ingredient in church planting is prayer, so I ask that you would be praying for the people of Mexico, and specifically for the students of Monterrey. Pray that God would be preparing their hearts and minds, and that he would raise up those on whom he will build his church in Monterrey.

On a side note, everyone around here is getting excited about the release of the Narnia movie on December 9th. I am going out to night to buy tickets for several dozen people who want to go on opening night. Any of you who know me know that I am also going to be at the midnight showing on Thursday. Aslan is on the move!

Dios les bendiga!

Josh

Thanksgiving

Psalm 100
Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

I am thankful to my God, the giver of all good things. I am grateful and honored to serve a God so great and mighty that He doesn’t need me, or anyone else; a God so compassionate, merciful, and loving that he takes me, fills me, loves me, and uses me. I am thankful for Jesus Christ; for his ultimate sacrifice and his love. I am thankful for his example and his willingness to serve. I am thankful for the Holy Spirit, for the way he works in my heart and in the lives of those around me, and for the miraculous ways I expect to see him work in the future. I am thankful for the Bible, God’s thoughts on paper. I am thankful for the way it instructs and directs our lives.

I am thankful for a family whose love and support is unconditional. I am thankful for parents who took to heart the command to “train up a child in the ways of the Lord, so that when he is old he will not depart from it.” I am thankful for a Dad who models the fatherly attributes of my heavenly Father; who taught me to be strong and brave, honest and transparent, and who showed me how to live with passion; a dad who taught me to protect my mom and sister, and those who need a shield. I am thankful for a Mom who lived by Proverbs 31, a woman whose character brings herself and her family praise at the city gates; a mom who taught me to be sensitive to the needs of others, who taught me to share, and showed by example that our lives are not our own. I am thankful for a sister who isn’t afraid; a sister who won’t compromise on the big stuff, and won’t sweat the little stuff; a sister whose love is so great that she was willing to lay down her life; who is fierce and gentle at the same time; a sister who is okay being second on my list, because she knows God is first. I am thankful for a brother who is always there for me and who is a husband and a father first. I am thankful for grandparents who pray, who care, and who listen. I am thankful for a niece and nephew that bring pure joy to my life; who can make any face smile and any day good. I am thankful for my extended family, and for the bonds that only grow stronger with time and distance.

I am thankful for friends that know and understand me, even when I sometimes don’t understand myself; friends that build me up, hold me accountable, and sharpen me - as iron sharpens iron; friends that I can laugh and play with, and study God’s word with; friends that stick closer than any brother; friends that I would storm the gates of hell with; friends that I would die for.

I am thankful for fellow missionaries of like-minds and like-hearts; people who encourage me with their dedication and selflessness; people who challenge me with their faith and obedience; people that don’t hesitate, don’t waiver, and seek God’s glory over their own.

I am thankful for countless prayer supporters who faithfully and consistently bring my name and my needs before the throne of God.

I am thankful for a church that teaches the Bible and pastors that seek the praise of God and not men. I am thankful for people who believe in me, and who were willing to give an inexperienced and under-qualified guy a chance to lead.

I am thankful for health and for a sound mind.

I am thankful for a country where I can worship openly, without fear of persecution. I am thankful for freedom and choices.

I am thankful for a purpose and mission in this life.

I am thankful to work for an organization whose purpose is to glorify God by fulfilling the Great Commission.

I am thankful for a God that uses the weak, the poor, and the rejects of this world. I am thankful and humbled to be a part of what He is doing around the world, calling those from every people, tribe, tongue, and nation to himself. I am thankful that He has given me life, and given it to the full. His promises are most definitely true! I give thanks to the Lord, and praise his holy name.

Psalm 105:1-2
Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts.

Psalm 118:1
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever.

Church Planting Movements - Part 1

Although I feel a little overloaded with information right now, this last week was a great time of learning. I am discovering more and more of what I will be doing, and how I will be doing it. Of all the sessions we had this week, I think my favorite were the two on Church Planting Movements.

The mission of everything we do is to glorify God. Within that mission, our goal is to be Christ's witnesses to the ends of the earth, as stated in Acts 1:8, that as many as possible would enter into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ as they are called by the Holy Spirit.

Habakkuk 1:5 says, "Look to the nations and watch - and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told." God's promises are true, and He is truly doing something amazing in our day. He is drawing lost people to himself and into a relationship with His son, Jesus Christ. The way he appears to be doing this is through Church Planting Movements.

It is so exciting to see God moving, and I seek to be a part of what he is doing. The gospel of Jesus Christ is being spread rapidly throughout the world, and is reaching many places that have never had any access to the truth of salvation. I would like to explain a little bit how this is happening, so that you can more effectively pray for me and the other missionaries who are planting New Testament churches, in obedience to the word of God.

First, I would like to give the definition of a Church Planting Movement, given in the book of the same title, by David Garrison. It is a rapid multiplication of indigenous churches planting churches that sweeps through a people group or population segment. This definition is important. This simply describes what is happening around the world, by the power of God. I will go into more detail in my next post, but I just wanted you to know what I mean when I say Church Planting Movement, or CPM.

Okay, in other news...today is our volleyball tournament. Pray that we would stay injury-free, have fun, and that I would be an Encourager on the court. Also, please pray that my "stomach" would feel better. This morning in tae-kwon-do class, I got an unexpected kick from a middle-schooler to the family jewels. I am still in pain three hours later. I am okay, but still a little sore. Also pray for our trip to Washington, DC on Friday, where we will be doing a lot of cross-cultural sharing of the gospel.

I also have a few praises. My friend Carlos had surgery last week, and has been back at orientation now for a week, and is doing very well. Also, I have had quality time with God every day, and have been intentional about how I prioritize my time. Another praise is that my former youth minister has just become the college/young adult and missions minister at my church. This is a huge answer to several prayer requests I had for my church and for the college group that I left to go onto the mission field. It is awesome to see God work.

Dios les bendiga!

Josh

Lord Levi Truelove

Well, I just received my second round of immunizations, and I am staring at my arm to see if I have any reaction to this TB skin test. I could be waiting for quite some time. :o) Tuesdays seem to be good days to post, as the whole campus shuts down in the afternoon so everyone can receive their shots. Instead of painting faces, today we are making balloon animals for the kids. I think some of the adults like them too.

As far as my training goes, I have been learning so much. We are now in to the full swing of things, and I have been busy. I spent this past weekend trying to get caught up on a lot of reading and work assignments, but there is still tons to do. I have really been into Scripture a lot, and I am enjoying the process of becoming more and more familiar with God's Word. Last night I was in Acts when I thought of a verse in Proverbs, but I couldn't remember the exact reference. I ended up reading almost the entire book of Proverbs, which is some great stuff. I didn't get much sleep, but today I feel like I have a lot more wisdom. :o)

We had several sessions last week on Spiritual Warfare. That was very beneficial, and as missionaries, we are pretty much guaranteed our share of battles. The sessions were taught by the president of our missionary board, and he not only provided a lot of experiences and stories, but also gave so many encouraging and enlightening Biblical passages to study and turn to when we are facing these situations on the field.

We have also been having sessions on the New Testament church, and the Biblical way to do missions. It is awesome to study and learn the same techniques that the apostles used to spread the message of Jesus Christ around the world. I am so encouraged by the fact that everything we are learning is backed up by the Word of God. We are also being taught how to personalize the Gospel and how to make our ministry culturally effective, and have opportunities to practice these methods.

As you can tell, I am learning quite a bit, but I have also made plenty of time for fun. I have been playing soccer, ultimate frisbee, volleyball, and running. Last night, myself and three other guys joined about 40 of the ladies for some aerobics. It was a challenging workout, and I am a little sore today. Last Friday night, I organized about 25 kids and adults and we played two games of Capture the Flag. I painted everyone's face with eye-black, and we went running around in the dark for the better part of three hours. It was a blast, and the kids haven't stopped asking me when we are going to play again. On Saturday, we are going to have a volleyball tournament, and I am really looking forward to that as well.

Another extracurricular activity that is worth mentioning is the little adventure I had on Sunday night with a few buddies. Here on campus, there is a legend about a special hidden room, which people from every session try to find. Well, Sunday night we found it, and from what we can tell, we were the first from this group. I really can't write more here, but if you want the full story, shoot me an email.

Well, I am going to go make some balloon animals. Please continue to pray for me as I prepare to take the love of Jesus Christ to Monterrey, Mexico.

Dios les bendiga,

Josh

P.S. The title of this post is the "Pirate Name" that I took last night when prompted by a slap-happy cohort and a mysterious instruction sheet.

Immune

Well, today was our first round of immunization shots. The nurses did a great job and I couldn't even feel any of them. It was actually a really fun afternoon, because I was working the childcare booth, painting faces and giving out candy as the kids came out after their shots. I also got my face painted, and since I haven't washed it off, I am sitting in Panera bread looking like a western Pacific warrior. My face is covered with black on blue lines, four red dots, and a big blue cross on my nose. I also have a large cross on my left forearm and an Icthus on my left. Talk about good times.

I drove into town tonight with a couple of missionary friends to eat and study for awhile at Panera Bread. The campus where we are doing orientation is pretty isolated, but it is only a 15 minute drive from a large mall area, where there is everything from Wal-Mart to Cheesecake Factory. We had dessert from there the other night, and are planning on going for dinner next week to celebrate one of the girl's birthdays. Anyway, I have already made two trips to Wal-Mart, and I am really glad that the have one in Monterrey, Mexico.

Right now I am in the middle of the seventh chapter of Acts. We have been doing a pretty in-depth study of Acts, and I am getting a lot out of it. Our goal as missionaries is to plant New Testament churches among indigenous believers, and I am learning so much about the New Testament church. I have read all of this before, but it is amazing how much more I am getting out of it when I take the time to dig deep and let God open it up for me. Pray that I continue to be intentional about spending quality and quantity time with Him every day.

Dios les bendiga!

Josh

Orientation

Well, after all the waiting and preparation, I am finally at orientation, where I am training to be the most effective missionary that I possibly can be. It has been kind of relaxing now that I am here, as the last couple weeks have been very hectic as I prepared to leave Kentucky.

There is a lot that I could share right now, as being in this position has me thinking about all sorts of things. I only have time to give a few.

1. I am incredibly blessed to be able to go onto the mission field and spend my time telling lost and broken people how they can be restored through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Everyone keeps telling me how proud they are of what I am doing, but I feel like I am the most fortunate person alive. I am so thankful to all of the people who have made it possible for me to get here.

2. I am dedicated to staying completely focused while I am here. It would be easy to get caught up in having fun and hanging out with all of my new missionary friends, but I am going to use this time to get as close to God as I can. As much as I love these people, they are not going to be with me in Monterrey. I know I am going to have a great time in training, but that is not what I am here for. I am on a mission and I have a job to do, and that will be my focus.

3. The hardest thing about leaving was saying goodbye to my sister and her kids. My neice and nephew are going to be the two things that I miss the most. In another excellent example of how God provides, I am going to be on the childcare team while at missionary orientation. For the next six weeks, I will be treaching and working with the kids of all the missionaries here. Not that the whole group could replace two seconds with my neice and nephew, but my time with the kids here will help me to miss them less, and will give me an opportunity to use my love of kids to provide a needed service at training.

4. The food here is good, but in Kentucky, where there are biscuits, there is gravy. I got my biscuits at breakfast this morning, and then covered them with the white colored saucey-looking stuff that was right next door. When I sat down and started eating, I realized that my biscuits were covered with OATMEAL! I was very disappointed to find out that we don't have any gravy here. How are you supposed to eat biscuits with no gravy?!?! Anyway, I am having Cheerios tomorrow.

Well, I need to head to an interview. I will update you more later.

Dios les bendiga!

Josh