Final Boarding Call - May 28th
Greetings! We continue to thank the Lord for so many of you who continue to stand with us, as we have struggled to find God's timing for our departure to Germany. We're very excited to share with you what God is doing.
We're booking tickets for May 28th. It feels as though there's only the few minutes to rush down the ramp to the plane, settle our luggage and get seated before the captain turns on the fasten seatbelt sign. A glance up will tell you there's still enough white on our support bars to give us some pause.
Over the last five years, as we've been raising our support, I think a lot on the Apostle Paul's words in 1 Cor 9:24 "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize." I have tended to see this fund-raising time as our race. Getting to the mission field has become our prize. That isn't what God intended though.
Over the past year, I've finally begun to see things in the context of the next verse. "Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever." The fact is, no one can compete effectively without training. I may wish that God had us on a fast track to Europe, where life would suddenly be easy, but that isn't the calling God has laid before us. God has placed us on a long road to a mission field where we will experience great challenges as well as joy. God has been using this time, training us to endure the challenges yet to come.
If you're like me, enduring challenge is probably not an idea that appeals to you. I think for most of us, the idea of Christian Service is uncomfortable. This is where I have to remind myself of what we're called to do. Easter is coming. In just a couple weeks we remember the day the God of the universe suffered beyond imagination for us. He poured out his life, so that when this race is over, there will be a prize for those of us who run the race. That's great news! We should tell somebody! And we're going to...
Recently we got an exciting phone call. Greater Europe Mission figured out a way to remove $1000 a month from our budget for the next two years by moving us into a short term program called EuroQuest. Over the next two years, we'll still have to raise that $1000 a month but rather than continuing only to train, it's time for us to compete.
Our ministry hasn't changed. We're still headed to Europe, where we'll be a part of GemStone Media, coming alongside of other ministries, helping to foster clear and effective communication between Europeans, the church in Europe, and the church in North America. Together, we can tell the world the incredible news that the God of the universe loves them to death ... and beyond.
Our training will never be over. We will always need people to partner with us. We need people who can encourage us, sponsor us, and run with us. In these final weeks before our departure, we are trusting God for the remaining $600 that we still need in pledged monthly support. God has a special place for you on our team. Over the years, we've had a number of people share with us that they just felt their gifts were too small. We've never felt that way, but that's a big part of why we've been able to get so excited about these matching grant opportunities. Just as our ministry works to come along side of other ministries and help them to be more effective, our current monthly matching grant works together with your gifts to double their blessing to our ministry. Another way we really need people to come along side us is to host a fund raiser for us. Some ideas we've had are a bake sale, a golf tournament -- we've even kicked around the idea of having an auction -- be creative! God has you in a unique place, where we can't be. Is there a way that you can use the unique equipment God has given you to help reach Europe?
We're booking tickets for May 28th (mark your calendars). We're going to Europe. We hope you'll stand with us.
