Missions Reality

 

Dear friends,

 

I hope all is well with you and your family. May the grace and peace of God abound in you and your family. I am writing you to tell you about some of the awesome things that God has been doing lately. Last August I had the opportunity to serve the Lord in Indonesia. A group of us from several churches came together and joined in some of the efforts already going on in Indonesia. God showed His greatness in many ways during the preparation for that trip. One of those was was that He provided over $32,000 for all of us to go on the trip. Another way was that He provided a closeness amongst the team. Another important part of the trip was those who were at home praying for us and the mission at hand.

 

Their prayers were answered in many different ways. All of us on the trip remained mostly in good health. Though there were times that some of us were feeling a little sick it was never anything serious enough to seek medical attention. God also provided opportunities for us to share the Gospel, the main reason for us going, to many people. One of those people was the village chief. Even though he did not accept the Gospel and make a profession of faith, he told us that he would not hinder us from sharing the story of Christ with the others in the village. We also handed out Gospel tracts to many of the kids in the village. These Gospel tracts were in their language which most of the children in the village were able to read. Though we may never see or hear the results of that trip, the work continues. Seeds were planted in the hearts of many Indonesians.

 

Right now I am at Word of Life Bible Institute. I am attending the second year program. The purpose of the second year program here is to take what we learned in first year about the Bible and apply it to ministry. One of our classes is Missions Reality. The goal of this class is to expose the student to missions. There are many opportunities to get involved in an overseas missions trip in April of 2009. Some of the countries that student will be going to include the Bahamas, Canada, and Argentina. There is also a group that is going to the United States.

 

The United States of America is the in the top three countries in need of the Gospel. It is said that 4% of the current generation are Bible believing Christians. That is a devastating. The Gospel of Jesus Christ provides the hope that so many youth are searching for. Many countries of the world see this need in our country and they are sending missionaries here to spread the Gospel. Word of Life also sends missionaries to the US. The Local Area Missionaries assist churches and youth pastors reach the youth of their communities. They provide discipleship for the youth pastors and assist with organizing the youth ministries to be Gospel centered.

 

I have been blessed with the opportunity to go to Georgia and spend ten days with Mr. David Livingston. There I will be able to assist him with different youth events and interact with some of the youth pastors in his area. I will also be able to get to know what is takes to be a Local Area Missionary. I am also praying through the possibility to enter into this type of ministry.

 

You can be a part of this trip that God has called me to go on and minister for sake of the Gospel. You can be a part by praying faithfully for this trip. Without the prayer support of other believers this trip cannot be successful. Your prayers are needed. With your prayers we will find ourselves moving forward with one heart and one mind that is God centered. Here are some ways that you can be praying for the Livingston family even now.

 

“During the months of October and November, we are in the middle of planning for Superbowl, a student evangelistic event, as well as running and speaking at FASCAR and STORM meetings. Pray for the gospel message to be presented with passion, clarity and without distractions. Pray for children and teens to hear and respond to the Word.”

 

 

Another way that you can join in the efforts of this trip is to tell others about it. You can share this letter with others and encourage them to become partners as well. The more praying for the success of this trip the better.

 

And the last way that you can be a part of this effort to spread the Gospel is to give. The cost of the trip is $900. That will cover food, housing expenses, the cost of a plane ticket, and other trip expenses. Prayers are needed and so is financial support. This is one of the most exciting ways that we can share in the furtherance of the Gospel. We can support one another with what the Lord has called each of us to do. Please pray that these funds will be raised and if you are led to give you can send a check made payable to Word of Life Fellowship (with “0YA609” on the memo line) with the enclosed support slip to:

Word of Life Fellowship

PO Box 600

Schroon Lake, NY 12870

All funds need to be in by March 15, 2009. All donations are tax deductible and you will receive a receipt from Word of Life.

 

Thank you for sharing in this awesome opportunity,

 

Phillip Scott

What if all was lost?

What if all that was around you was lost?  What if it was all destroyed?  Last night I had a dream.  For those of you who know me well you know that I dream a lot.  In this dream there was an epic battle raging.  Everything had been destroyed or was being destroyed.  Though all this was going on, in the dream I found myself faced with a delema.  I was in a hospital room and I needed to get out quickly.  There were several items on the table that I could take with me, like money, keyes, clothes, and other items like it.  I quickly realized that I did not need to worry about any of these things because they are meaningless in the battle that was being warred outside.  So I left it all behind….

What in life do we hold on to that has no real value?  Is it our job, or our car, or our house?  Perhaps it is the way that we are viewed by others.  What is it that really matters in life? 

All Christians, there is a battle that is being fought and we are on the front lines.  It is life or death.  It is serious.  The eternal state of mankind is at stake!  Are we taking the Word of God out to the battle lines and sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the story of Gods love?  That is the only thing that matters in this world.  All the rest will pass away and has no value!  So why persue those things if they don’t matter?

Thinking

So I am sitting here thinking about life and considering where I have come from and where I am going.  I do know where I have come from.  I can look back and see the road that has brought me to where I am at right now in my life.  As I look at the road there were some detours that I made because I did not like what I saw in front of me.  But those detours were not short cuts at all.  In fact that almost always took me back a few steps in the long run.  I am in awe of God.  How could He accept me after what I have done?  How could I ever have hope of eternal fellowship with Him?  I look back and I know that all that I have, every breath that I take is not deserved.  They are all gifts from above.  I know that He loves me, not because of anything that I have done, but because of who He is.  It is His love that sent His Son to this world to die for my sins.  It was His love that died on that cross 2000 years ago.  Knowing that I have to look forward to the future.  Do I see the multitudes of lost and hungry people?  Do I care??  What will I do??  From everyone who has been given much, much will be required.  I have been given forgiveness of my numerous sins.  If I truly believe that then I have an obligation to share that with as many as I come in contact with.  What does my future hold?? I wish that I knew.  I wish that I could see it all laid out.  I wish I knew if XF Cafe will actually come to fruition.  I have no idea.  I will push onward.  I will seek the face of God through prayer and through the Holy Scriptures.

Pride

Pride sometimes, no, many times gets the best of me.  I say things like, “I don’t need help” or “I can do this”.  The truth of the matter is I do need help and I can’t do anything.  That is why I need Christ in my life.  “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” Phi 4:13.  That passage addresses both statements.  Christ is the one who “helps” me do anything and everything.  Also Christ is the one who does the work in me that is made manifest through me.  So it is fitting for me to say “I need help” and “I can’t do this”.  This is the way that I normally look at pride.  There is also another way that has been brought to my attention recently.  In the book of Acts we read how everyone shared everything and gave to those who had need.  “And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need.” Acts 2:44, 45 (also Acts 4:34, 35). How were these needs known?  Scripture tells us.  Acts 6:1 reads “Now at this time while the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint arose on the part of the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily serving of food.”  These Jews made their needs known.  They did not keep them to themselves, but shared them humbly with the Church, the Body of Christ.

Are we as believers relying on the Body of Christ, the Family of God to minister to our needs?  In order to do so laying aside pride is necessary.  Why as believers do we pray and ask our Heavenly Father for help, but do not share with those people that He has brought into our lives how we are hurting or how we are in need?  God has chosen to use the church to reach the world for the Gospel of Christ Jesus.  He has also chosen to meet our needs through the church.  Make your needs known one to another.  Love each other and give to those in need according to all that God has given you!  Perhaps if the church started acting like the early church in this area the love of Christ could be seen more clearly by a needy and dying world!

Holding onto the Rock

A few weeks ago I had the privilege to go white water rafting for the second time.  The most beautiful Elisabeth was going with one of her friends and a spot opened up for me to go.  It was a wonderful time in God’s creation.  It is always enjoyable for me to get out and spend time in the mountains.  Throughout the trip our guide, let’s call him Dan, would inform us of not what was ahead so to speak but more how to get through the rapids.   He would tell us to paddle straight ahead or to the left or right or straight back.  From his position in the boat he could see what was coming up.  We had to trust him for what to do.  This is how it is with God.  From his position he is able to see more than we see.  We are to trust Him because He will get us through.

At the end of the trip we came to part of the river that was calm enough for everyone to jump in.  Dan told us of the “Needle” that was coming up.  There were two large rocks in the river that were called the “Needle” and the challenge was to “thread the needle”.  That sounds easy enough right, just aim right between the two rocks.  He also shared that if done right we could use the current to pin ourselves against the rocks.  But, he added the warning for us to be careful not to go too far to the right because the current would take us the wrong way.  Well the person that I am I decided that I wanted to get pinned.  Elisabeth was right there with me.  And sure enough the current was stronger than anticipated.  We were very quickly being swept away.  Quickly I reached up and grabbed the rock.  Once I was secure, I stretched out and grabbed Elisabeth and brought her to the rock.  We then were able to help one another to get back on course.

Isn’t this how it is with our walks!  We test the limits and see how far we can go.  The current is always stronger than we thought it was and we get caught up in it.   The current begins to take us where we don’t want to go.  The only hope is to reach up and grab the Rock.  It is only then that we can get back on course.  It is only then that we can help others who are struggling.

Where are you at?  Are you testing the waters of the world?  Are you being swept away by your sin?  Christ, the Solid Rock, is so close to us that all we have to do is reach out and He is there.