Community Center

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"Mom" says..... The children and I have had the privilege of teaching at a small community center for Iraqi refugee children the past few weeks.  Many of them are from Christian background families from Mosel. Most of them have not been to school for a year or have no access to school currently. We have been teaching them the Bible and English since most of them will be living in an English speaking country in the future. We are thankful that the Lord has provided our family an opportunity to serve together and to share His Word. Please pray for the children and their families. Also, pray that we would continue to have good relationships with the other teachers in the community center.  We all attend the same church.

"Dad" says... By God's grace, things are going well. We enjoy living in our small community outside of the capital. Yesterday we went hiking with an Arab family and found 2 turtles and a scorpion :-\ The kids are making a lot of friends. Our older kids recently attended a dance at a Christian school. A few of us joined a local gym. I'm having some great conversations with leaders here about biblical parenting. I'm learning which resources in Arabic should be promoted and how to best serve Christian families here. My residency permit should be finished next week, which will allow us to get a driver's license, which will allow us to get a vehicle! Please pray for both the permit and the right vehicle. Also, ask God to continue to give us more clarity regarding language learning for all of us. There are many Arabic-learning options here and each member of our family has his/her own unique language needs.

Fuheis, Jordan

This is a photo from the roof of the rented home we have settled into over the past week. We love it! It is located in a primarily Catholic and Orthodox community just outside of Amman called Fuheis. It is not the same home owned by the Jordanian Christian family that we requested prayer for in our previous e-newsletter. It is bigger and less expensive! It is also within walking distance of the Arab church we have been attending. Our church has been reaching out to many Iraqi and Syrian refugee families who have come to Jordan over the past year to flee the persecution of ISIS. At our New Year's Eve party, I sat back and watched all of these families enjoying fellowship, even though most of them have not known each other for more than 12 months and many of them are still grieving the loss of their former lives in their home countries. There are many needs. There are many opportunities for us as a family to be involved. Please pray that God would give us wisdom to choose that which will bring Him the most glory. Also, pray that we would have discernment regarding how much Arabic language study each member of our family needs.

We have begun the process of applying for a residence permit through the Jordan Baptist Convention. Please pray for God's will to be done through this process.

Please also pray for my wife and I as we meet Tuesday with a biblical counselor. When she and I conflict, 90% of the time it is related to parenting, probably because 8 children means lots of decisions to be made! Perhaps our most recent struggles are not only the stress of living cross-culturally and being unsettled but also spiritual attack, since we came here to promote biblical parenting in the Arab church. We are asking God to use our time in counseling to build greater unity, consistency, and grace in our marriage and parenting. Would you pray with us?

Parenting

Parents of ISIS are strategically training their children in terror, hate, and fanaticism, as this video demonstrates. Parents of the Arab church must strategically train their children in the gospel, suffering, and unconditional love if the Great Commission is going to be fulfilled in the Arab world.

Parents, I need your help. In preparation for parenting ministry among Arab Christian parents, I need to gain experience. Would you help me by filling out this confidential parenting self-assessment and then meeting with me once for about an hour to talk about it? For those of you living far from us, phone is good, but video chat is better :-) Do you know other families that might benefit from this ministry? I need to meet with dozens of American families in English before I try to meet with Jordanian families in Arabic.

Having 8 kids doesn't mean that my wife and I know it all. It means that we've tried it all... and failed often! But all of us learn from our failures, don't we? None of us are perfect parents, but God uses each of us to sharpen and encourage one another, primarily within the context of the local church. Ever wonder why there are only two verses in the entire New Testament that speak directly to parenting? Perhaps it is because the answers to our parenting challenges are found primarily in the gospel, and how we apply the gospel to our parenting. Please pray for these conversations that I will have with parents over the next few months.

Summer Haps

We feel led by God to continue moving forward with our long-term move back to Jordan, probably sometime in early fall. More about that here.

Over the summer, I am practicing Arabic using online resources and working on some counseling certification that I will mention in the next e-newsletter. My wife is spending a lot of time with the 4 youngest kids, including an hour a day of homeschooling. One of her favorite things to do is gathering the little kids to read to them. Kendra had the opportunity to photo shoot her first wedding by herself and has a few more coming up. She will also be working at a Christian camp in New York for a month. Samuel is working on a farm in the mornings, then spending much of the afternoon working out at the local activity center. Anna is life guarding at the same activity center, babysitting, and working with horses at a local barn. Max has several jobs around town cleaning, mowing, painting, and selling his chicken eggs. Heidi has been getting some much-needed eye therapy. Petra, Henry, and Nehemiah have been swimming, making forts in the woods, jumping on the trampoline, and sleeping well at night.

We calculated that we have 45 different one-on-one relationships under our roof! You don't have to pray for each of those combinations :-) but would you pray for our relationships with each other? It can be stressful preparing to move overseas.

Financial report for April and May.

Moving Back

"Insha allah" is an Arabic phrase that means "if God wills". Our family is making long term plans to return to the Middle East sometime in the fall to promote biblical parenting among Arab Christian families. We want to take it slow, giving God time to confirm that this brings Him the most glory, and therefore is best for our family. You can read about it here.

Please ask God....
to clearly show us if our family returning to the Middle East does not bring Him the most glory.
to show us if the fall of this year is His best timing for this move.
to prepare mutually sharpening relationships for us with other families in the Middle East.

Financial report here.

Missions Videos

Over the summer I emailed several of you with a link to these missions videos that our family have enjoyed watching together and discussing. There are 7 videos, each about 5 minutes long. ​Yes, that's a lot of videos! But near to the heart of God is nearly half of the world's population who have yet to hear the gospel, and our children thoroughly understanding that. ​We want to share these videos with as many Christian families as possible to spark conversation about God's heart for the unreached people of the world.

With holidays and snow days approaching, I thought this may (or may not!) be a better time for your family to enjoy watching these videos together as a family. ​​​Some families have asked me to email or call them after one month to hold them accountable for watching the videos. Reply to this email if you would like for me to contact you. We would love to hear your family's take-aways from watching!

​Perhaps another opportunity for your family to learn about missions is to download and listen to these missions teachings ​as you travel together over the holidays.

One friend of mine thought that we were soliciting donations by sending the missions videos. Well, we are happy if you want to bless our family financially :-) but the reason we are promoting these videos is because we understand the importance of Christian parents helping their children to understand that Jesus deserves worship from all nations.

Financial report here.

Fam Update

Yep, they are growing up. Kendra (17) is wrapping up high school at home, working at a local coffee shop, and trying to start a photography business. Samuel (16) worked 30+ hours a week on two farms over the summer. Now he has begun business classes at the local tech school. Anna (14) is joining him in those two classes, while working at the same coffee shop as Kendra, as well as working with horses at a local barn. Max (13) will soon begin a trial period of helping me with the online ministry. He joins the oldest three in a weekly co op where they study history and science. Max, Anna, and Samuel have begun cross country practice, but 2 months ago Samuel sprained his ankle and recently got out of an air cast. Heidi (10) is the big sister taking Henry (7) and Nehemiah (5) to the public school just behind our house. Petra (8) is staying home with Max and my wife, who is giving her a little extra attention this year. My wife is managing everything I have just written! I'm still pecking on this computer. We are blessed to have extended family live near us, as well as a weekly community group of 5-6 families to study the Bible, pray with, and fellowship together.


Please ask God to help my wife and I as we desire to parent according to the gospel, learning how consistency and grace work together.


There are 44 separate one on one relationships under our roof! That makes for lots of dynamics! Please ask God to give each of us grace, wisdom, consideration, and lots of unconditional love.

The Beast

This past weekend we attending a family conference.  The speaker referred to TV as "The Beast".  His idea was... it destroys, it is a waste of time, it harms families.  I agree.... kinda.  We don't have a TV, but we do have a 27" computer monitor that plays Youtube videos from our iPad.  Some things are worth watching.  They edify our families.  They educate.  They take us to places we will never go.  They allow us to meet people we will never meet.  They give a homeschooling mom an hour break in the afternoon.  We've begun a list of those online videos here so that others can be blessed by them also.  Would you send me the links to any online videos that you have found to be ultra-edifying?  I may add them to the list.   

Financial report here.  

What Is God's Will For Me?

1 Thessalonians 5:18 says,  "..... for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  What is God's will for me?  Maybe verses 16 or 17 will tell me the "where" and the "when" of God's will.  Nope.  God is more concerned with "who" we are..... "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus (emphasis mine)."  I am learning that joy is rooted in thankfulness.  I am learning that there is no limit to practicing the presence of God in our lives, thereby obeying the command to pray continually.

We will close on our house next week!  It's a 2 bedroom, 1 bath but it has an unfinished basement.  It's on a little more than an acre just on the edge of town.  

New Testament-Style Church

For the past 3 years our family as has been meeting in house churches. Why? It is not because house churches are more common in Sudan than America. Quite the opposite! I would like to share our reasons with the hope of persuading you to consider New Testament-style church. My purpose for writing this article is not disunity, but that we as a unified body of Christ might recover some New Testament principles that I believe will strengthen us and contribute to the fulfillment of the Great Commission. First, a little church history.

All the churches planted by the apostles in the New Testament met in homes. Church buildings did not become popular until the 4th century when the Roman emperor Constantine converted pagan temples into Christian churches. The Protestant Reformation of the 15th century saw multitudes return to biblical doctrine but Roman Catholic church practice remained to a large degree. There has always been a remnant of believers throughout the ages who have sought to obey biblical principles for the weekly gathering of the church to one degree or another.

When we trace modern church planting movements in China, India, Cambodia, etc. we find similarities to the churches planted by the apostles. We find house churches, participatory church meetings, abundant evangelism, lay leadership that springs from within, rapid reproduction of churches, and mature believers. Currently there are more house churches in the world than there are churches that meet in buildings. When we see rapid advancement of the gospel, we find house churches. This is my main reason for advocating house churches...... to fulfill the Great Commission to "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them" and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commanded as written in Matthew 28.

The strongest biblical basis for intimate church is found in 1 Corinthians 14. Nowhere else in the Bible does God give us 14 consecutive verses “commanding” (vs.37) us what to do when we gather for church. Verse 26 says, "What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation.” It is a fact of church history that the churches planted by the apostles were gatherings where mutual edification, interaction, and spontaneity were the norm. It was far from being a spectator sport. The goal of the gathering was simply to “let all things be done for edification” (vs.26). It operated more like a family and less like a staged performance. Believers came to church not only asking "What can I get out of this?" but also asking "What can I give to build up the brothers and sisters here?" Someone once said, “If you tell me to do something, I probably won't. If you show me how, I might. If you involve me, I will.” When all the believers present begin to have ownership of the weekly church meeting, they mature spiritually.

Imagine going to a park to play some pickup basketball. You see one guy on the court shooting around while he has told everyone else to sit and watch him. That doesn’t fly anywhere. We, especially us men, want to play. We want a piece of the action. Don't make us come to church, sit, and listen to one man talk. An impression without an expression can lead to depression. We will grow in spiritual maturity when we are given opportunity to express what God is teaching us. Then we will be more of the husbands, dads, and friends we should be. The most obvious place to obey the Lord’s commandment (vs.37) of interactive, open church gatherings is in homes. When the gathering becomes too big and time does not permit all to participate, another house church can be planted to reach and teach more people in a new neighborhood. In China, a believer is considered to be maturing in Christ if he has a church that meets in his home.

Other reasons why we gather in homes:

*You reveal your true identity at home. Gathering in homes fosters transparency and intimacy. (Romans 12:9)

*We are obeying biblical commands to follow apostolic tradition as well as apostolic teaching. (2 Thess. 2:15 NASV)

*The Lord's Supper can be eaten as a full meal as the early church did. They looked back to the cross with the Eucharist and looked forward to the wedding feast of the Lamb with the fellowship meal. (1 Cor.11:20-22)

*There are more opportunities for believers to practice their spiritual gifts. (Romans 12:6-8)

*Authority resides in the church corporately and decisions by consensus of all the believers present are possible. (Matthew 18:17)

*Meeting in homes positions the church closer to lost family members and neighbors. (Acts 1:8)

*Currently 38% of American evangelicals listen to a sermon via podcasting each week. (Barna 5/26/08) With this phenomenon occurring, why not return the weekly church meeting to the home where we can discuss what we’ve learned throughout the week? (Ephesians 4:11-13)

*Multiple lay elders need not concern themselves with buildings and salaries, but are able to focus their attention on their relationships within the church.

*The Holy Spirit is more free to move as He spontaniously impresses something upon someone's heart during the meeting, or as He leads someone to prepare a teaching days before the meeting. (1 Cor.14:30-31)

*There is greater potential for relationships that are more community based, seeing each other more than just once a week. (Acts 2:46)

*Formality can be minimized while reverence for God can remain high.

*Intimacy fosters accountability. (James 5:16)

*Believers would be less likely to invite a non-believer to a church program and more inclined to personally speak with them about salvation. (Acts 5:13-14)

*Believers become loyal to God’s kingdom and each other, not programs and buildings.

*Each time we see the word “preach” in the Bible it always refers to something taking place outside the church….. evangelism. In a house church we teach one another and preaching is returned to it’s proper place.

*Evangelists and church planters can be supported with voluntary gifts rather than the unbiblical practice of salaried positions within the church. (Matt.10:8)

*Tithes/offerings are given to the needy instead of buildings and salaries. (James 1:27)

*Before the 1950s churches in America were not 501c3 incorporations. It is much easier for a house church to be a free church rather than the unbiblical practice of falling under the government’s jurisdiction. (Matt.22:21)

*Prayer requests can be heard and prayed for individually. (Acts 1:14)

A few objections answered:

“Our church has Sunday school classes and small groups that meet in homes. Isn't that enough?”It is definitely a step in the right direction. I’ll be the last guy to say that the traditional church model with it’s building, pastor, and denomination is “bad”. The Lord saved and discipled me in the traditional church, and He will continue to use this model to expand His kingdom. It’s not a matter of “good” or “bad”. It’s a matter of “good, better, or best”. A traditional church with home groups is better than a traditional church without them. I’m persuaded that a voluntary network of autonomous house churches is best.

During the small group, is there freedom for a believer to share a teaching, song, or testimony as the Lord leads? Do you eat the Lord's Supper as a full meal like the churches planted by the apostles? With our time, talents, and treasures do we demonstrate that we value buildings and programs more than the simplicity of the 1 Corinthians 14 church meeting? Do we feel we have simply inve$ted too much into our traditional church buildings to walk away from them? Are we more focused on how many people are coming to our church than how many believers are coming to maturity in the kingdom? There are few paid ministers who will encourage small groups to become house churches, for obvious rea$ons. It just wouldn’t make cents.

”Does it really matter how we gather as long as we are loving Jesus?”Jesus says that those who love Him will obey His commands. Do we really think that Christ would leave us without instructions about something as precious to Him as His church? A legalist exalts a rule above the principle behind that rule. Without becoming legalistic, how can we best apply biblical principles in our church gatherings?

”Wouldn't house church foster heresy?”Actually, the participation of all believers in the house church minimizes heresy. Heresy was maximized when church buildings became the norm and silenced the pew sitter. When all believers have the freedom to speak within the church gathering, teachings can be questioned and other passages of scripture can be presented. Is it possible that denominations began when pew sitters were silenced and unable to share their interpretation of scripture in regard to a certain doctrine? Can we not joyfully gather with believers who disagree with our interpretations in regard to doctrines not related to salvation? As important as many secondary doctrinal issues are, is there one greater than the unity of believers? Can we trust the Holy Spirit to give life to house churches that honor Him and to give death to those churches that do not? It is much easier for a church to die when its members have not inve$ted in its building.

”What about the guy that just keeps talking?!” A more mature believer, possibly an elder, needs to speak with him privately. The elder must learn how to use his relational influence, not the power of his position, to persuade. Could 1 Cor. 14:30 have been written with this in mind? Could it be understood that if you’ve lost eye contact with most folks that it’s time for you to wrap it up? In the traditional church where the pew sitter is silenced, his character flaws are rarely discovered, but his non-Christian co-workers know them well.

”What do we do with the children?”
Children can be taught to sit quietly. Younger children can sit on the floor and play quietly, or if needed, play in a room beside the gathering room. Flexibility is the key. We want our children to see us interacting with other believing adults in spiritual conversation and prayer. Children should learn the Bible primarily through their parents, not the weekly gathering. House church is a gathering of families.

Many of us here in the west have never questioned our church traditions because we have never experienced anything different. If you are persuaded that some biblical principles are missing from your current church experience, will you obey whatever God tells you to do? Are you more comfortable following church traditions of a 4th century Roman emperor than church traditions of the apostles?

Personally, our family’s experience with house church has been far from perfect. Maybe years from now I will not keep the same convictions about church that I have now. Above all is Jesus Christ….. His glory, His kingdom, His praise. Lord, help me to never to focus on the bride above her Groom.

Recommended reading:
http://www.ntrf.org/articles/
http://www.ptmin.org/articles/