October 6

Walking the Talk

We use this phrase a lot at Grace: There is a huge difference between a person who talks the talk, and one who walks the walk.

In Ezra we find a walker. He is about to make the 800 mile journey from Babylon back to Jerusalem and he has just told the king that God will protect him in the journey. But somewhere in the middle of the night Ezra wakes up and says, this is crazy, what have I done, there are bandits on the way to Jerusalem. I am sure he had second thoughts and devised a plan to ask the king for a military unit with tanks and armored vehicles to shadow them. But Ezra was a kingdom minded guy and he thought that this would send a wrong signal to a skeptical and non-believing king. The king would think if God is able to protect this guy, why would he need my marines? So he reconsiders his fears and decides to have prayer become his protection.

Here is how it unfolded in the mind of Ezra:

Ezra 8:21-23 There, by the Ahava Canal, I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions. I was ashamed to ask the king for soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies on the road, because we had told the king, "The gracious hand of our God is on everyone who looks to him, but his great anger is against all who forsake him." So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer.

In three days Chad, Erik and I leave for Africa. I am not going to ask for soldiers to protect us but I will ask for your prayers. There are inherent risks in any journey of this magnitude. We realize these risks and gladly accept them as part of our kingdom responsibility. But I ask you to stand with us in this battle through prayer.

Our Mission: Our mission is to encourage African pastors to not give up but to finish well in their kingdom work. Besides our support and celebration of these mighty men and women of God we will also spend time in studying the Bible. Here are specific topics we will cover:
1. Leadership training
2. Developing the skills of pastoring a church.
3. Understanding the Old Testament.
4. Working on strengthening godly character.
5. Building strong families and working with the next generation.
Our Sponsor: We are working with Dr. Aila Tasse and Lifeway Mission. This is an African-driven mission that is focused on church planting and disciple making.
Our Team: This year we are sending two teams to Kenya. Our team will consist of Erik Vanderkolk, Chad Herzog and myself. We would covet your prayers for both teams.
Our Itinerary: We will depart on Friday, Oct 9th and return Monday, Oct 19th.
Your Part: Pray for 10 minutes each day of this mission. Here is a memory device to help you organize your prayers:

KENYA

KEPT Kept in the protection of God. We are headed into an area with a lot of witchcraft. This is the first time Lifeway mission is reaching out to the Kitui region. We do expect to encounter spiritual opposition. We will actually be staying with the pastors in their homes. Keeping our families safe and healthy in the US as we are away from them.

ENTHUSIASM Romans 12:11 says, “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor serving the Lord.” Pray that we will be able to fight through all the possible obstacles that might steal our joy or energy away from serving these African pastors.

NOURISHMENT May the pastors be strengthened and encouraged by the Word of God we bring to them. Pray for the nourishment of the African church which is experiencing incredible growth. Without the church being nourished by the Word this great movement will not last.

YOUNG PEOPLE One of the themes God has placed on our hearts is to challenge the African church to strategize a plan to pass the baton of faith to the next generation. Pray for the children of Africa.

ATTITUDE May our attitudes always reflect the Savior that we serve. May these pastors see Christ in us.

Thank you again for standing with me in this mission.
I will try to email from Kenya if it is possible.