Mission to the Americas

Serving Ministries and Missions in Latin America

Archives for May 2009

Calling Forth Missionaries

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Preaching in FiladelphiaOn Mother’s Day Sunday, I was invited to preach at Centro Christiano de Filadelphia, a church in the Colon province.  I was given a translator for this event.

I’ve seen the church on several occasions driving back and forth (when we rent a car).  For a while, it didn’t have any walls – this year, it has finally enclosed the walls.

The sound system wasn’t working right, and the roar from torrential downpour slamming the steel roof presented some acoustical challenges.  Outhouses in the back served as the facilites.  The humidity level was 100, with very little breeze.  Though the church had some fans hanging on the walls to create a breeze, it wasn’t enough to prevent me from having to use a handkerchief several times.

No complaints, just describing some of the setting.

The people of this congregation were very friendly.  Ushers wore uniforms that set them apart from the crowd, creating a wonderful first impression.  They guided us to our seat, and introduced me to the pastor and her husband.

The song set was loud, and the words were not projected at this time.  As part of the church’s growth, I can see the setup where they will eventually have a data projector.  The screen was a tarp strung with shoelaces to a frame made out of electrical conduit.  Resourceful.

I was asked to preach on a missions calling.  I was joined by a team from IPET, a group of the students that I’ve been teaching in Colon.  They brought a drama, testimony and song as well.

Psalm 67:1-2 served as the foundational text:

“May God be gracious to us and bless us, and make his face shine upon us, that Your ways maybe known on earth, Your salvation among all the nations.”

God’s blessing is for a purpose == the proclamation of His name.

So often, as individual Christians, and as churches, we are so focused on seeking the Lord’s blessing, but we disconnect it from the purpose of blessing.

This was the leading for that Sunday.  About 150-200 people in attendance.

Church of PhiladephiaThe call you see pictured are for those who wanted to receive the filling of the Holy Spirit to accomplish the work of being witnesses.  We had already spent some time in repentance for selfishly holding on to our blessings, and committing to the purpose of our blessings, the proclamation of God’s name.

In that moment, we also prayed for those who are discerning

  • a call to global missions internationally, or
  • a calling to be intercessors for missions.

Both are important work, and several people raised their hand to indicate a need for prayer in each category.

This work this Sunday was only a seed.  IPET will likely stay in touch with those sensing a call to missions to help nurture that calling and provide some of the training to fulfill it.

A word of Thanks

Thanks to all of you who are praying for us here and choosing to support or work in Latin America.  Moments like these are the fruit of your partnership with us here.

Teaching Events in May

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Teaching Missions

The season of networking in Panama is producing fruit.  I’ve been doing some teaching and preaching in April and upcoming, here is the mix for May.

Schedule

May 9-10
Cross Cultural Missions Conference – Colón

May 18
IPET in Colón, Verbena Church – Evangelism

May 23
Celebration of Baptism

May 25
IPET in Colón – Worldview and Cross Cultural Missions

May 30/31
IPET in the Darién Province, Sermon on Sunday

Missions Congress

The Cross Cultural Missions Congress will be in the city of Colón, the place where the gospel had it’s beginnings in Panama and an area that has had a special blessing from God for spread of the gospel.

Immigrants from all over the world are have settled in Colón and many have risen to positions of influence and power.  There is a growing Muslim presence and economic influence in the city, and one of the best schools in the eyes of many in Colón is the privately funded Arab College.  Other people groups from India and China, as well as the West Indies and the Caribbean have settled there.

In the last four months, HIMF (Hermandad Iberoamericana de Misiones Fronterizas) has opened up four mission training schools in the province of Colón, with approximately 70 students in that province, made up of

  • Pastors
  • Cross Cultural Missionaries
  • Teachers
  • Support Workers

The missions academy is named “Panamanian Institute for Crosscultural Studies.“  The acronym in Spanish is IPET.   HIMF is a Latin American sending agency who’s goal is to raise up missionaries from Latin America to other parts of the world.

The missions Congress is geared towards casting a vision for international missions – both abroad and at home – and recruiting another 80 students to join its classes and grow in its missions calling.

Gathered around the theme of Acts 1:8, we desire to cast a vision

  1. For Global Missions as seen in Scripture
  2. Help the people of God fulfill the Great Commission in their calling
  3. Awaken, guide, and give God’s people tools to reach into other cultures
  4. Recruit future students for further training in cross cultural missions at home and abroad.

I will be sharing the teaching responsibilities with pastors from Guatemala, Costa Rica, Venezuela, and Panama.  On Sunday, I will be preaching in a local church, with one of the outreach teams from IPET, casting a vision for missions and for the Global day of Prayer (May 31).

My particular theme is on the “Reaching my City for Christ.”  I’ll be sharing some of the strategies I’ve learned while church planting in Richmond VA and here in the city of Panama.

Prayer

Here is how you can pray:

  1. Safety in transportation.  A new highway has opened up.
  2. Provision – we will rent a car for the weekend.  With fuel and food, our costs to participate will run about $150-$200.  Pray that provision will come.
  3. Clear Communication
  4. That people would grasp the vision for missions.

Pickpockets in Panama

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pick_pocketToday, walking my daughter home from ballet, I watched a pick pocket lift a cell phone from a purse.

I felt powerless to do anything about it.  Not enough language skills to find a police officer or describe the person

Like a shadow, he appeared and it was gone in less than 3 seconds.

Because of the drug trade that runs in our city, I have no knowledge if the robber is carrying a gun, or has other accomplices or what.

Later, I thought of things I could do safely, but I still don’t know if I would be able to do anything.

It happened so fast, so casually. 

The victim left her cell phone in an outer pocket of her purse, and with a swift hand, he lifted it. 

One thing that happens in a big city like ours is this kind of petty thievery.

On New Years eve, a lady was getting a soda at the little convenience store, when a fireworks vendor snatched and grabbed her necklace, leaving the fireworks box on the floor. 

Some of our party guests were witnesses, as they were getting additional ice for our party.

We’ve been picked at least twice and Brenda has stopped one or two trying to get into her backpack.  One of our uncles was picked on a crowded bus.

Well meaning strangers have often warned us if they notice that our backpack zipper is slightly open. We understand the reason why. 

I find that when I walk with my kids anywhere these days, I walk with a level of alertness that we didn’t have before.  I’m scanning the crowd.  During my walk, all are suspect.

We’ve had to learn the hard way.  In the suburban US where we lived, this was never a consideration. 

We’ve now formed new patterns of behavior and new ways of thinking because of our calling to live in this city. 

We pray for this city, we love this city, and it does break our hearts to see this kind of stain in our city.

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