The Road to India

Wow. It is hard to believe this day is finally here. It was just over six months ago that we learned about Compassion International’s pilot program. From then it has been a whirlwind journey, applying to the program, being selected, going through training, getting our partner church in India, and now the day has finally come. Bob and I are flying to India to get more training and to meet our partner church in Pratapura.

We know many of you would like to receive updates about our trip. We believe we will have occasional access to the internet over the next week. So we are planning on using three ways to send out updates.

First, Bob and I will be posting updates on the New Covenant Facebook page. If you are on Facebook, become a Friend with (or fan of) New Covenant to get frequent updates.

Second, I plan to post some updates on the missions blog. Here is the link -- oh, wait, you are already here!

Third, we plan to send out occasional updates to the church. If you don't receive it already, go to www.newcovenantbible.org and click on "eNews sign-up" at the bottom of the home page and check the box for "missions." (If you get the church e-news, you will receive a special email telling you how to manage your subscriptions and just add "missions").

Let me close by giving you a few prayer requests:

• Pray for the obvious: Good health, safe travel, smooth flight and train connections, etc.
• Pray for us to adjust quickly to another culture and timezone.
• Pray for us to make a great first impression on St. Paul’s Church, our new partner church.
• Pray for us to establish a healthy and mutual working relationship with St. Paul’s Church.
• Pray that we would have wisdom in discerning how our two churches can best partner together.
• Pray too for the 30 or so other churches in India with us as they also meet and begin a relationship with each of their partner churches.

So thanks, in advance, for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.

For His Kingdom,

James

Short Term Trips for 2010

For those of you who attend New Covenant:

Are you interested in being a part of a short-term mission trip this year? Come to an informative lunch on Sunday, February 21 at 12:30 PM in room 135 and learn about the many teams being planned in the coming year. Pizza provided for all who attend.

Decious Retirement

Wayne and Phyllis Decious were New Covenant's first missionary family. They moved to Arizona to serve at Sunshine Acres in Arizona as house parents to young boys. Over the years they have raised many troubled boys into godly young men.

After many years of faithful service, they are officially retiring. They already transitioned a few years ago out of being house parents, but continued serving in other ways at Sunshine Acres. But due to health and physical restrictions, Wayne is now officially retired. Phyllis will continue to work part time at their boutique, which raises money for Sunshine Acres.

If you know Wayne and Phyllis, consider dropping them a note, card, email, or making a phone call to encourage them and thank them for their many years of service. Pray for them as they enter into a new phase of life and ministry. Pray, too, for Wayne, who will have shoulder surgery this month.

Partners in the Gospel

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:4-6 NIV)

If I had to only use one word to describe how we view "missions" at New Covenant, that word would be "partnership." We do not "hire" missionaries to go do our work. We do not send out full time employees of New Covenant. No, we partner with those doing the ministry.

This idea of partnership is not just for individuals and families who serve as missionaries. It is also something we can do as a church. Around five years ago we intentionally began a partnership with a church in Cesky Tesin, Czech Republic. (A report on that partnership is coming soon!) Today we are in the process of being partnered through Compassion International with a church in East India.

So what does a partnership mean? What does it look like? In one word, a partnership is a relationship. We find an individual or a church who shares our passion for local and global prayer, care, and share, and we come alongside them in a relationship to see how we can accomplish more together than we can on our own.

It is important to understand that this is significantly different than a business partnership. While there are boundaries and expectations in a relationship, a biblical missions oriented partnership is about the relationship, not accomplishing a list of goals or achieving a predetermined list of results. Obviously when you invest in a relationship you hope something comes out of it, but an organic relationship allows things to develop based on how each partner is designed by God, not based on how we can "use" each other.

We will be announcing soon the details about our partnership with a church in East India. As we do so, my hope is that when you hear the word "partnership," the first thing that comes to mind is "relationship." Exciting things are ahead. I am grateful for the opportunity God has provided us to learn and grow along brothers and sisters in Christ in East India.

Why Did Jesus Come?

Why did Jesus come to earth 2,000 years ago? Some of you might give the "Sunday School" answer: He came to die for my sins. Others of you might suggest He came to show love to the world. Some may not really care. But for those who take the Bible seriously, this is an important question to get right. Why, exactly, did Jesus come?

We don't have to guess. We don't even have to read what someone else said about this question. Here is what Jesus himself gave as the reason he came:

Now Jesus came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and the regaining of sight to the blind,
to set free those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to tell them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled even as you heard it being read."
(Luke 4:16-21 NET Bible)

There are many other passages that can be added to this one to give the full picture of why Jesus came. But we make a mistake if we don't take this one seriously. Jesus came to do more than just provide us a way to go to Heaven when we die. He came to do more than give me a happy, fulfilled life. No, He came to bring good news to the poor, freedom to the prisoner, sight to the blind, and liberty to all who are oppressed. That is why the Gospel truly is "Good News."

So as you celebrate Christmas this year, keep in mind that Jesus' birth was about far more than you and me. It should especially be a time when we remember those less fortunate than ourselves. It should be a time when we care for the poor, bring comfort to those who are hurting, and, yes, proclaim the truth that a new relationship with God is possible because God is with us -- He took on human flesh and dwelt among us. That is why we can truly have a very Merry Christmas.


I will be taking a break for Christmas. See you again the first week of January.

Advent Offering at New Covenant

The Advent Conspiracy series is an opportunity for us to conspire together for a radically different way to experience Christmas – a way that will release us from consumerism to celebration, from weariness to worship. As part of this series, we are raising funds for a special Advent Offering.

To participate, write “Advent Offering” on the check memo or envelope and mail to the church office or put in the offering by Sunday, December 20.

Q. Why are we doing an offering this year?

A. The idea comes directly from our Advent Conspiracy series as we seek to worship fully, spend less, give more, and love all. It is also deeply rooted in our prayer, care, and share culture. Our desire is to tangibly care for our neighbors, both locally and globally.

Q. How will the offering be used?

A. We will use 90% of the offering collected to help provide clean drinking water to children and their families in East India through Compassion International. We will distribute the remaining 10% among our New Covenant Ministry Partners.

Q. Why are we focusing on clean water for this offering?

A. Nearly 90% of all diseases in the world are caused by unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation, and poor hygiene. The weakest members of communities are the most vulnerable; every day water-related diseases claim the lives of 5,000 children under the age of five. Providing clean drinking water not only meets an essential need, it also then provides an opportunity to share about Christ, the Living Water.

Q. Why did we choose Compassion International?

A. There are many good organizations that provide clean water. We chose Compassion because they are a child discipleship organization who does all of their work through a local church. We recently volunteered to be part of a pilot project that will soon partner New Covenant with a Compassion church in East India. While this offering will not necessarily go to help our partner church, it will make a difference in the near vicinity. This means our offering is not only providing clean drinking water, it also enables a local church in India to do prayer, care, and share in their own community.

Q. How will the money be used?

A. Compassion has already begun a large scale water project to provide water to 13 needy communities. The cost will vary by site depending on what is needed. They will install a bore well at 13 child development centers. Additionally, seven of the sites will receive rain water harvesting and storage systems to ensure access to clean water during both the rainy and dry seasons.

Q. How much will this water project cost?

A. The total cost of the project is $46,457. The actual cost per site will vary depending on what is needed, but the average cost is roughly $3,575 for each child development center. A full executive summary is available at the Information Center and church website.

Q. What if we don’t raise $46,457?

A. Compassion will take whatever amount we can raise, and will find other donors to make up the remaining cost.

Q. Why East India?

A. In addition to being the location of our future partner church, India is one of the largest unreached nations in the world today.

Q. What if I would prefer to give my offering to another need?

A. Our goal with the Advent Offering is to encourage us to spend less and give more. If God leads you to give to a different Kingdom opportunity, then we encourage you to follow His leading.

Q. Who are the Ministry Partners receiving the 10% portion of the offering?

A. The Ministry Partners are Aid to Women, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, His Hands Free Medical Clinic, His Women, House of Hope, InterVarsity (at Coe College), Keys to Living, Serve the City, Youth for Christ, Proverbs Ministry, and YoungLife.

Clean Water

A few minutes ago I went and filled my water bottle with ice and water from the tap. It is something I do regularly. I don't stop to wonder if the water is safe. I don't boil it before drinking. While I like putting it through a water filter, it is for taste, not to remove dangerous parasites amoebas. When I brush my teeth, I don't have to worry that just putting my toothbrush under the faucet could mean getting sick for days or even weeks.

I have visited many other countries where I could not drink the water. Some of the time it was just because I was not adjusted to the microorganisms in their water supply. But other times it was because the water was dangerous. Yet I never understood how deeply this impacted the lives of over a billion people around the world. Here are just a few facts you can find on the website of Living Water International:

At any given time, half of the world’s hospital beds are occupied by patients suffering from a water-related disease.

Nearly 90 percent of all diseases in the world are caused by unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation, and poor hygiene. Every year, there are 4 billion cases of diarrhea as a direct result of drinking contaminated water; this results in more than 2.2 million deaths each year—the equivalent of 20 jumbo jets crashing every day.

The weakest members of communities are the most vulnerable; every day water-related diseases claim the lives of 5000 children under the age of five. That’s roughly one every 15 seconds.

This year we at New Covenant are considering how to approach Christmas in a way that focuses less on ourselves and more on our Savior. As we enter into the story of Christmas, we are drawn to worship our Savior who left the comfort and splendor of Heaven to come and provide living water for all who are willing to accept it (see John 4:7-15). But the story does not stop there. His example was to not only meet the spiritual needs but the physical as well (one example: John 6:1-13).

As we follow His example, we should do the same -- meet both the physical and the spiritual needs of those in need. But in order to do that, it takes spending less on ourselves, giving more of our presence to others, and loving all -- especially those who are most in need (see Luke 10:25-37). One tangible way is to provide clean water, which is probably the most basic physical need in our world today.

That is the focus of our special Advent offering this year at New Covenant. On Sunday, December 20, we will take a special Advent offering to care for needs both locally and globally. We will send 90% of the offering to Compassion International to help up to nine projects in East India. We have chosen Compassion because they work through a local church, which means there is opportunity to help with both the spiritual and the physical needs in that community. Each church partner location will use $5,000 to supply clean water by drilling and/or rain water catchment and storage infrastructure. We will fund as many of these projects as God provides money. The remaining 10% of the offering will be divided among our local ministry partners such as Aid to Women, His Hands Free Medical Clinic, and House of Hope.

If you don't attend New Covenant, you can still make a difference. Go to the website for Living Water International for one option. And check out the website for the Advent Conspiracy and this article at Missions Network News to learn more about how we spend far, far more just on Christmas presents than it would cost to provide clean drinking water to those who need it around the world.

Remember the Poor

When you hear about someone who is "poor," what comes to your mind? What images do you see? What judgments do you make? What emotions do you feel?

Now take time to read these four verses and compare what they say to the answers you just gave:

There will never cease to be some poor people in the land; therefore, I am commanding you to make sure you open your hand to your fellow Israelites who are needy and poor in your land.
(Deuteronomy 15:11 NET Bible)

The one who oppresses the poor insults his Creator,
but whoever shows favor to the needy honors him.
(Proverbs 14:31 NET Bible)

The one who gives to the poor will not lack,
but whoever shuts his eyes to them will receive many curses.
(Proverbs 28:27 NET Bible)

Open your mouth, judge in righteousness,
and plead the cause of the poor and needy.
(Proverbs 31:9 NET Bible)

The New English Translation (NET Bible) has 164 verses that contain the word "poor." Some of those verses contain warnings that imprudent choices can lead to poverty. Unfortunately, those are the verses some choose to emphasize, forgetting the many commands to care for those who are poor. In fact, I was one of those who forgot these commands. I was never purposefully demeaning of those less fortunate than myself, but I failed to recognize my responsibility to get actively involved in helping those in need.

I don't believe those of us who have been blessed should live in guilt over our prosperity. Instead, I think we should do what God intended -- use our blessing to bless others. In the coming months, we will explore some ways we can do this at New Covenant in a global context.

Our goal is not to end poverty. It is simply to be obedient to what God commanded us to do.

The Essence of Partnership

For those who attend New Covenant and read this blog, you already know that our church recently decided to move forward with an ambitious plan to relocate to a new facility. Yet this relocation is not about having a new building. It is about us continuing and even expanding our ability to make disciples, both here in Cedar Rapids and around the world.

At this historic moment, we are in no way scaling back our missions emphasis. On the contrary, we feel God is leading us into some new and exciting Kingdom opportunities. To be specific, we are investigating launching a new partnership with a church in another part of the world. It is too soon to give specifics, but I am excited at the opportunities this partnership will provide to us in the midst of our relocation journey.

So what is a church partnership? That is a good question! Remove from your thinking any idea of a business partnership. Instead, think of it as a friendship. A partnership is a mutual relationship where both churches seek to work together to accomplish God's mission to see His kingdom come, His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

This is what we entered into a few years ago when we started Project CR, a partnership with a church in Trinec, Czech Republic. Our goal was simply to come alongside and serve them as they had need. We had the opportunity to assist them in purchasing a new facility a few years ago, have sent a team to meet with their church leaders and a team to do a kids camp, and we continue to send teams to teach in the Business English Camps every June.

We have no idea right now what this new partnership will exactly look like. But what I do know is this: It is first and foremost about a relationship, not about accomplishing a task or meeting arbitrary goals. Our desire is to serve and allow them to serve us as God sees fit. I can't wait to see what God has in store!

Knowing the Heart of God

Do you want to know the heart of God? Do you want to be actively involved in doing something that you know will bring Him great joy and glory? Do you want to get the perspective you need to evaluate how everything you do can make a difference for eternity? Then attend Perspectives on the World Christian Movement.

Perspectives is a 15-week course that will turn your world upside down (or more likely, turn it right side up!). Taking it will help you to catch the vision of God's glory, His heart for the nations and the advance of His Kingdom to the edges of the frontiers.

Perspectives will be offered at over 200 locations next year. The closest one to Cedar Rapids will be the class hosted at Mt. Vernon Community Bible Church in Mt. Vernon, Iowa, beginning January 18, 2010. For more information or to register, go to perspectives.org/mtvernon. Or go to the Perspectives website to find the course nearest to you.

(Click here to read another post I wrote about the Perspectives course.)

Reading with Understanding

A few days ago I read an email from a friend who is a missionary. In it she mentioned that she avoids using the term "missionary" to describe herself because people think of "Moravians" when they hear the term. I was confused since Moravian missionaries have not been around for a few hundred years! After sending an email to her asking why she was concerned, my friend corrected me and pointed out that she had actually written "Mormon," not "Moravian."

While your first thought might be that I flunked my quiz in "reading comprehension 101" (and you would have a good point!), the reality is this illustrates her concern about the baggage that comes with the term "missionary." My love for missions and knowledge of missions history led me to fill in the blank with a word I was familiar with. I see "missions" and "missionaries" as good things, so read into it what I expected to see. Yet for many others, the term evokes images that are negative and to be avoided.

Despite my momentary lapse in reading skill, I do agree with her point. That is why this blog is entitled, "Kingdom Partners." The term missionary is not even found in the Bible. While a useful term in some contexts, it is not always the best one to use. So what is a Kingdom Partner? It is someone who cares for others and invites them to know the Creator of the universe. We don't care to make converts. We care because Jesus cares. We don't share to put anyone down or to deprive them of their dignity. We share the Gospel because it is living water to those who are thirsty. It is bread to those who are hungry. It is life to those who are dead.

When Jesus told us to go and make disciples of every people group he was asking us to find individuals and invite them to follow him and be like him, the most loving and holy and just and righteous person who has ever or ever will live. That is a job description of which we can be proud.

Why Do Global Care?

At that time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them, named Agabus, got up and predicted by the Spirit that a severe famine was about to come over the whole inhabited world. (This took place during the reign of Claudius.) So the disciples, each in accordance with his financial ability, decided to send relief to the brothers living in Judea. They did so, sending their financial aid to the elders by Barnabas and Saul. (Acts 11:27-30 NET)

For the last four years we have been challenged to live a lifestyle of reaching out to others through prayer, care, and share, both locally and globally. While this may not have been a new concept to you, I have found this approach very helpful as well as challenging. It has helped me to see outreach as more than just telling someone the Gospel and expecting them to cross the line of faith right then and there. Yet it reminds me that sharing the Gospel is always something I should look for God-given opportunities to do.

But the biggest challenge has been the “care” component. On the local level, it reminds me of the importance of having a relationship. On the global level, it reminds me of how ignorant I am at times of the real needs of others in the world.

I want to challenge you to become more aware of the global needs for care. This does not replace the need for us to share our faith. Rather, it is often an important and necessary step to demonstrate that our faith is real. We are not caring for people to get converts. No, we care because Jesus cares. We reach out because Jesus reached out to us.

This type of care was true in the early church. The Christ followers in Antioch sent financial aid to the church in Jerusalem during a famine. But keep in mind what the church in Jerusalem was doing. They were reaching out to their community. The financial aid helped care for more than just believers in Jerusalem.

Let us do the same today as we reach out to those in need, both here in Cedar Rapids and those in other nations.

To learn of one way we can reach out to churches and individuals in other countries to demonstrate the love of Christ, read this story about a way churches are meeting a need in India:

http://www.mnnonline.org/article/13394

Blogging Again

After taking a few months off, I am resuming blogging. With the reformatting of the Sunday bulletin, this will also be the place where I usually post my weekly Kingdom (Missions) Update, as well as updates about our Kingdom Partners and our short term teams.

Definition of the Kingdom of God

To the same apostles also, after his suffering, he presented himself alive with many convincing proofs. He was seen by them over a forty-day period and spoke about matters concerning the kingdom of God…. So when they had gathered together, they began to ask him, “Lord, is this the time when you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” He told them, “You are not permitted to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the farthest parts of the earth.”(Acts 1:3, 6-8 NET Bible)

At one point in His ministry, Jesus taught his disciples to pray, “May your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10 NET Bible). During the forty days after His resurrection, he continued to focus on the kingdom of God (as quoted above). So it is no surprise that the disciples would wonder when that prayer would become a reality. But the disciples made a crucial mistake. Their view of the coming kingdom was too small. Their focus was on the restoration of the kingdom of Israel. Jesus was focused on something far bigger: the coming of God’s kingdom to all of the nations. It is in that context that we find the familiar verse in Acts 1:8 telling us that we will be witnesses to the ends of the earth.

So what then is the kingdom of God? Good question! The Bible never lays out a simple, clear definition. Most of the time Jesus used analogies and stories to illustrate it. But living in a time when a Roman emperor (another word for king) reigned over them, they understood the concept. A kingdom was not just land or territory. It referred to the rule and authority an individual had over other people and even over nature. God’s kingdom therefore refers to His rule and authority being exhibited in every area of our lives.

To be continued…

Entering the Kingdom of God

As you go, preach this message: “The kingdom of heaven is near!”
(Matthew 10:7 NET Bible)

What is the message we are to bring to the nations, including those in our own backyard here in Cedar Rapids? Every month we send support checks to our 23 Kingdom Partners (money that comes from your faithful giving) to enable them to do prayer, care, and share among various people groups all over the world. This coming weekend we will participate in Healing the Heartland, a culmination of three years of focusing on prayer, care, and share in our own community. As we pray for those who don’t know Christ and care for them in the name of Christ, what do we hope to share with them so that they can enter into a relationship with Christ?

If you had asked me this a few years ago, I would have replied the message we bring is the Gospel: Christ died for our sins and rose from the dead. And I think that answer is true, it is just incomplete. After taking Perspectives on the World Christian Movement (twice!), I find myself rereading the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles and coming to a different conclusion. The message they preached was based solidly on Jesus Christ and him crucified, but the focus was on something else: The Kingdom of God.

What is the Kingdom of God? It is not a concept that fits easily into our American world view. We are used to a very democratic and individualistic mindset. The very idea of a king who has full authority and under whose sovereignty we live is almost repulsive. I fear that carries over into our spiritual worldview. We would rather see Jesus as our companion and buddy rather than the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

I want to suggest that what we are truly inviting people to enter into is not just eternal life or a relationship with God (though both are true), but ultimately we are asking them to enter into the Kingdom of God. I will explore more of what this means in future weeks.