Archive for the ‘Discipleship’ Category

Jul
22nd

On Leadership

Posted in: Bekah, Discipleship | 2 Comments »

Leadership isn’t something I’ve sought out in the past. I’m happier being a follower, and am at my best when I have a leader I can trust and job duties that are easily checked off a list. Because I’ve seen ineffective leaders, I avoided leadership roles out of fear.

–>warning, rabbit trail ahead.

Proving, once again, that God has a sense of humor (hello ability to pass gas!) God called us to a place that has shown me how to trust, but removed my lists. Sure, I have lists for groceries and for my basic duties here but most of what we do here is relationship based, and as you probably know relationships don’t come with a list.

and rabbit trail done<–

Through a series of events, God had given me the desire to lead a short term trip. Frank and I discussed it, and he agreed that God had placed this calling on my life. I emailed a friend at Adventures in Missions and asked to be put on the list if an opportunity opened up. He responded that the trips had been booked for the summer, but that he would keep me in mind.

A month later, another staff member emailed me and asked me to lead an Ambassador trip. From what I know, these two staff members had not communicated with each other. God had given my name to the staff member. I signed up for the trip, not knowing all of the details.

Then I received the email with details, including that part of the trip would take place in Ometepe. Frank would not be with me. I thought, “Oh boy! This isn’t what I signed up for.” Which is typical of most major commitments, but because God had confirmed this calling in several ways, I accepted it when it didn’t go the way I though it would.

Things I learned and felt while on the trip…

I could feel prayers covering me. The most obvious being that I found it easier to show myself grace and to make mistakes without allowing discouragement and feelings of failure to seep into my identity. The day after the trip ended, a lot of these doubts started coming back. I’m assuming this is when parents and leaders stopped praying in full force for the trip.

The last week was the hardest. My patience wore thin, and I snapped more at the girls during that trip than the rest of the trip combined. I didn’t handle difficult situations as well as I could have. Mostly because I was so tired and hadn’t had any time to myself.

A month long trip allows you to just start getting into the surface. Serious issues aren’t really uncovered in a month.

Leadership requires getting your hands dirty. You have to serve when you don’t want to serve. Answer questions when you have already answered 50. Be nice when you feel like being mean.

Leadership requires a desire to learn and knowledge that you will not be perfect.

Leadership requires humility and courage to apologize and make things right when you make mistakes. Something I’m still working on.

Leadership requires leading by example. If you gossip or tear other people down, the people who follow you will do the same. If you cheat or cut corners, so will they. If you grumble or complain, they will take this as permission to do the same.

God is real and active. We had a moment when we were praying where one of the girls had a vision of bright light surrounding us. At the same time, another girl opened her eyes while praying and saw streams of light flowing through us. Coincidence, I think not.

Jun
20th

By Chance or Divine Appointment?

Posted in: Community, Discipleship, Stories | No Comments »

As I think back over the past 4 years and I look more intently at events and the result of those events, I am amazed at how everything has come together. Let me trace back some of these events for you:

  • Down a broken road, I was led to this church.
  • Down a broken road, Rebekah was led to the same church.
  • We met during a time in our lives when we were finding peace, joy, and ourselves after many years of pain and struggle.
  • We married in March of 2007.
  • 9 months later we went to Honduras.
  • 10 months later we went Nicaragua.
  • 1 month later God told us to move to Nicaragua.
  • Our lives now have purpose and meaning and it is all because of God’s work in us.

But what we didn’t know was that while God was at work in our lives during this time, he was also at work in the life of a single mother of 2 in Nicaragua.

After arriving in Nicaragua in August 2009, we met Natalia. Rebekah began to build up a relationship with her and this led her to help Natalia start a sewing business to help her support her family. We decided to film her story and share it with our friends and supporters with the intentions of raising some money to help finance her business. After talking to her further, I was shown how God had woven our paths together. Here are some of the events that led her to where she is now:

  • Down a broken road, I was led to this church.
  • God began to show me who I was and how much he loved me.
  • God brought a Christian woman named Brittany into my life and she help me and discipled me.
  • God brought another Christian woman named Annie into my life and she helped me as well and discipled me.
  • And now God has brought another Christian woman named Rebekah into my life and she is helping me start a business and she disciples me as well.
  • My life now has purpose and meaning and it is all because of God’s work in me.

This left me wondering whether all this has happened by chance or by divine appointment?

Rebekah, Natalia and Dalia

As these three lives walked down broken roads seeking their identities, God was working in the midst of their brokenness in order to have those paths cross so that he would be glorified.

And for that I am eternally grateful…

Jun
10th

James 1:2-4

Posted in: Discipleship, Lessons, Solo Por Hoy | No Comments »

A couple of weeks ago in Solo Por Hoy, we started to walk through the book of James verse by verse (click here to see last weeks’ lesson).

Jesus tempted in the wilderness for 40 days
[image source]

This week we walked through verses 1:2-4. Here’s what we learned:

Verse one is an introduction and James is telling his readers who he is and who he serves and he is also sharing who the letter is written to. Tonight we’re going to move on to the next passage.

Read verse 2

Some of you may be asking yourselves, “Count it joy when I meet trials and temptations? What? Aren’t those hard things to go through? Why should I be joyful during a trial?”

Read verse 3 for the answer

It says that when our faith is tested that the outcome or result will be steadfastness. Does anyone know what the word steadfastness means? It means: firm and dependable, unchanging.

Ok so now we know that steadfastness is the result of resisting during times of trials and temptations. Now let’s read about steadfastness.

Read verse 4

Let steadfastness have its full effect – this means staying strong and firm during a trial so that we can see the results or the purpose that we are going through the trial. There is always a reason why we go through trials and temptations. They are not without purpose. God uses them for our good, to make us better, to teach us things.

If you were here last Friday, we learned that being tempted is not a sin – being in a trial is not a sin. It’s when we give in to the temptation or react in a negative way while in a trial – that’s we fall into sin.

So what James is telling us today is to stand firm against the temptation. By doing that, steadfastness will have its full effect which is what? You will be perfect and complete – lacking in nothing.

This reminds me of Jesus and how he resisted temptation for 40 days before he started his ministry. God rewarded him for this. I’ve always found it interesting that it seems that Jesus had to do this before he was able to start his ministry. It’s as if the power he needed for his ministry was found in or was the reward of his steadfastness during this time of temptation.

The same power that was in Jesus during this time is the same power that is alive and at work in those who follow and have faith in him today – right now.

Basically what James is sharing with us here is that trials and temptations are designed to produce spiritual maturity and should therefore be counted as joy.

Related posts:
James 1:1

May
31st

James 1:1

Posted in: Discipleship, Frank, Solo Por Hoy | 1 Comment »

Last week in Solo Por Hoy, we started to walk through the book of James verse by verse. I have felt the need to do this in my personal life for some time and thought it might also be helpful for some of the guys as well. As I prepared for this weeks’ lesson, I stopped after reading the first verse of chapter 1 where James mentions being a servant to God and to the Lord Jesus Christ.

True servanthood
[Image source]

I decided to dig into that a bit further today and this is the lesson that I will be sharing tonight:

“James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.” (James 1:1)

A servant is defined as a person who is working in the service of another. In another version (NASB) it uses the term “bondservant”. A bondservant is someone who is bound to another as a servant. It is a picture of the servants’ close ties with his master. He belongs to him. He is obligated to him and he wants to do his will. The will of the bondservant is consumed by the will of the master. A bondservant willingly devotes himself to his master. This is not a forced relationship. It was often a choice or an agreement.

Here in the first sentence of James’ letter we see him defining who he is. He is stating his status and that is that he is a servant or a bondservant of God. He is saying that he has fully surrendered to God and to his will. James understood that as a person who has been redeemed his life was no longer his own.

“…for you were bought with a price” (1 Corinthians 6:20)

“You were bought with a price; do not become slaves of men.” (1 Corinthians 7:23)

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for w many.” (Mark 10:45)

In Mark, we see James and Paul’s motivation for writing these verses. The one they followed – the one they were bondservants to – is stating that he came to serve, not to be served. James is saying that he is the property of his Lord, Jesus Christ – the one who when he was on earth was his half-brother. He doesn’t even mention this fact in the introduction of his letter. This dedication was important to James – more important than status or the opinions of others. If I was writing this letter I would have no doubt mentioned the fact that Jesus – the savior of the world, the son of God himself – was my half-brother.

Another reason James mentions this word – servant or bondservant – is to make the connection between his life before and after Christ. Before Christ, he was a slave to sin. But Christ reached into his life and rescued him from death and separation from God so now he had dedicated his life to Christ.

We are all servants to someone or something even if we don’t realize it. That someone or something either brings us life or brings us death. If we are not a servant to one, then we are a servant to the other. The questions James is presenting his readers are the same questions being presented to us – what are you a servant of and does this master bring you life or does it bring you death?

May
20th

The New Self

Posted in: Discipleship, Frank | No Comments »

It is incredibly sad to see first hand the way that crack has destroyed the lives of so many people here in Granada Nicaragua. Life after life has walked through the doors at the mission base seeking help with their addiction to this substance. Stealing from family members, robbing people in the streets, beating and sometimes killing some in order to get their hands on more. Staying clean for weeks or even months only to slip, fall and then disappear. The cycle repeats. Over and over. It’s hard to make sense of it. It’s overwhelming and sobering for me at the same time.

addiction
[image found here]

Part of my job here is to teach the guys that their identity is not in their addiction, their identity is in Christ (I am in the process of learning this as well). We are not addicts – we are Christ-followers. Some of us may still struggle but that struggle no longer defines us, Christ defines us. Though often times we run back to our addictions, this does not mean that we have not been set free from our addictions. When this happens it is more of an identity issue than it is an addiction issue.

In the 9 months I’ve been here, I have seen God remove the false selves of several guys (including myself) and I’ve seen a couple of those guys pick them up again. But when this happens, it does not mean that everything they did was a waste. Putting on the new self is a discipline that comes with practice.

Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. [Colossians 3:9-10]

…to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. [Ephesians 4:21-24]

May
17th

Sólo Por Hoy (Just For Today) Readings

Posted in: Discipleship, Frank, Lessons, Solo Por Hoy | No Comments »

I thought it would be a good idea to share with you from time to time the readings and teachings that we use for Solo Por Hoy. Our readings been adapted from the Narcotics Anonymous website (and altered slightly). If you find the material interesting and/or if you are leading a group that is recovery focused, feel free to download and print the lessons and readings to use.

“How It Works” or “Cómo Funciona” is what we read at the beginning of our meetings:

“Just For Today” or “Sólo Por Hoy” is what we read at the end of our meetings:

May
15th

Meet Natalia

Posted in: Community, Discipleship, Fundraising, Stories | 1 Comment »

Natalia lives in Granada Nicaragua. She is a mother of two with an amazing heart and she wants to start a sewing business that employs women that are coming out of prostitution. With the average salary of $20-40 per week, its impossible for her to save the money needed to start the business. Loans from banks are very complicated and often the terms are hard to meet. We are attempting to raise money to help her start her business. If you would like to help, contact us.

Click here to learn more about Natalia and her story

Apr
6th

Lunes a La Casa de Oracion

Posted in: Community, Discipleship, Frank | 1 Comment »

It was a beautiful night out at the Prayer House for the first Monday night Solo Por Hoy meeting. This night is lead by a fellow recovering addict who really has a heart for people that are struggling with addiction. He styled the night a little differently and it was great to be a part of it. We started with some general guidelines and then had a time for musical worship lead by one of my favorite people – Lester.

House of Prayer

During the time of the group when we allow for people to share, one of the brothers shared how he had offended Lester in his past and through tears he apologized to him. They met in the middle of the room and embraced each other as Lester forgave him. It was beautiful. I leaned over to Mario and said “that’s what this is all about”. Reconciliation. Restoration. Forgiveness.

That’s when it hit me. God is at work in these meetings. God is moving in the hearts of addicts in this little corner of the world and I get to be a part of this. It’s truly a beautiful experience.

Mar
26th

Dos Mas!

Posted in: Community, Discipleship, Frank | 2 Comments »

I have some great news to report – there is a good possibility that by this time next week there will be two more Solo Por Hoys meeting each week. When we started Solo Por Hoy my prayer was that it would multiply and that some Nicaraguans would step up and lead other meetings with the goal of having one that met every day of the week.

3 days down – 4 to go!

Mar
21st

Am I Available?

Posted in: Discipleship, Frank | No Comments »

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about discipleship and what it actually means to disciple someone. I recently read a blog post from the director of the organization that we are with that explains why discipleship is often tough. In the post it says:

It takes time. To do it right, you need to be influencing a disciple’s life 24/7 like Jesus did. 16 waking hours a day x 3 years = 15,000 hours.

It takes years. Disciples change slowly and make lots of mistakes before they start getting it right. And they may never leave your life.

It takes trust. When you ask your disciple to change her behavior and you don’t have an answer she likes for “Why?” She still has to trust you.

It takes modeling. A thousand sermons don’t show you how to change your behavior, but if the behavior can be demonstrated, it answers the “How?” question.

It takes confrontation. In our natural fleshly state, our behavior is selfish; to help change it, disciplers must confront it and ask for something different.

It takes availability. Discipling another person is an inconvenient task. It intrudes on your regular life and often robs you of your privacy.

It takes vulnerability. As your disciple sees you live your life out before her, she see your flaws. Those flaws give her permission to fail.

It takes care. You can’t do this clinically. Sometimes you have to hug and kiss disciples. You have to accept them in their messed up state.

It takes listening. The only way that you can help a disciple work through the need for change is by listening.

It takes wisdom. You’re dealing with a person’s life here. The counsel you give in tough situations may be hard to hear and implement.

It takes confidentiality. Your disciple’s issues are a matter between the two of you. Share it elsewhere without permission and you blow trust.

It takes vision. You have to see your disciple not as they are, but in your mind’s eye fully developed.

Since we’ve been here in Granada trying to live this out in daily life, I think the availability is the one that trips me up the most. Am I really making myself available to people or do I get annoyed when they drop by or inconvenience me in any way. I’ve never been an it’s-ok-to-drop-by-on-me-anytime-kind-of-guy but I know that this is an important part of building relationships through which true discipleship happens.

Today I am praying that I can become a person who says, “It’s ok to drop by on me because I care about you. It’s ok to come to me when you need someone to talk to even if that doesn’t fit into my schedule.”