Not One Has Been Lost

Joanna Coppedge, Missionary, Scotland

The Call, July-September 2016

The beauty of the gospel is that it doesn’t matter where we are from, where we currently call home, or where our passport leans heavy on stamps. Jesus loves us all and came to make His home in us, if we will but welcome Him!

After having recently given birth to our fifth baby on our third continent, I am beginning to wonder if I might need to look more closely at this issue of migration and the loss of one’s home and home culture. And with our family growing, it is no longer just my husband and I who have to answer these questions of cultural identity. Our children are 8, 6, 4 (twins), and brand new. A couple of them still consider their home in Arua, Uganda, to be their true home. One is certain that she is from the United States of America (where we have never lived as a family, only visited, but it is our passport country and their grandparents’ home). One asks when we go to the grocery store if we are going to Scotland now or if we are still in St. Andrews (we currently live in St. Andrews, Scotland), and our littlest fella is currently waiting for his residence visa…some claim so he can legally be in our family! Needless to say, we have some culturally confusing conversations around our breakfast table.

1 Peter 1:1-2 (MSG) talks of exiles: “I, Peter, am an apostle on assignment by Jesus, the Messiah, writing to exiles scattered to the four winds. Not one is missing, not one forgotten. God the Father has his eye on each of you, and has determined by the work of the Spirit to keep you obedient through the sacrifice of Jesus. May everything good from God be yours!” As I recently prepared a Bible study on this text and prayed over it, it brought me continually to my little people and their own apparent rootlessness. Will they grow and be just scattered, blowing in the wind? It was quite a frightening thought. The Father patiently encouraged me to read on…“Not one is missing, not one forgotten.” His attention is on each one of them. He knows them by name and has good, pleasing, and perfect plans for them. Jesus Himself has redeemed them, and they are kept by His Holy Spirit. These promises provide security and hope for a wanderer in this world. What confidence we can have even when our passport is thick and growing. He sees us, knows us, and keeps us. 

In fact, the company of wanderers is not all bad. The call of Abram to leave his own country and walk with God has had a profound effect on my own walking out of my faith and following Jesus. Abraham’s migrating and leaving of family and home culture ultimately proved to be a significant part of God’s redemptive plan for the globe.

We are witnessing a great migration here in Europe today. Horrible atrocities are forcing millions from their homes. Yet, spiritual persecution, mass exodus, and homelessness are not new or unique to this day and age. Such struggles and transitions are as old as Genesis. Just as Abram had to choose to trust God on his wandering journey, so also am I learning to trust Him. Even more, I am learning to trust Him with my family. 

Will you trust Him with your own faith journey and the path your family is on? How is He leading you just now? Does it seem a bit scattered? He is trustworthy. Will you pray with us for those on unplanned migrations around the world, seeking stability, that they will seek Jesus?

PRAY: "Jesus, there is a confident peace that comes in the assurance that You know each of us by name. You know our circumstance, the concerns of our soul, and our daily provisional needs. Beyond that, You have good, perfect plans for each of us. I pray for those who feel scattered, who may feel vulnerable, and who have made the decision that an unplanned migration is necessary at this time. Jesus, send them peace that passes understanding and encourage their hearts with Your promises. May each of us seek You, and may we be obedient to Your leading. Amen."

Prayer Calendar August 28 - September 3, 2016

Coming tomorrow on The Call blog:

"After having recently given birth to our fifth baby on our third continent, I am beginning to wonder if I might need to look more closely at this issue of migration and the loss of one’s home and home culture."

Pray for missionary families as they raise their children to be "sojourners."

Living Among Refugees: Are We Willing to Love These People?

A missionary living in the Middle East
The Call, July-September 2016

How would you feel if your homeland was so torn apart by violence and war that you were forced to leave? Images of your hometown play on the news, showing injured neighbors and obliterated buildings. What kind of future could you possibly build for your family when you have lost everything? 

Yemen, Iraq, Syria—this is reality for many in the Middle East. My own family evacuated our city in a country in turmoil when a colleague was killed. When we moved to the country where we live now, we unknowingly rented an apartment that is in the midst of Iraqis who fled the war in their own homeland. 

We have a unique connection point with our neighbors because we understand, to a lesser extent, the trauma of having to leave your home suddenly. We understand seeing pictures of streets where our family once walked that are now filled with trash and destroyed homes. 

In my present role, I get to work with teams located throughout the Middle East. I get to help individuals and families get ready for ministry in this region. Historically, we’ve seen that after societal upheaval like a war, there’s a period of spiritual openness. We want to be ready to move in with the message of Jesus Christ. And here’s the good news: in the middle of the awfulness of the wars here, God is moving! 

People in these countries are seeing the horror wrought by “defenders” of their religion. They are questioning their own belief systems. They are reaching out, looking for some measure of hope. As refugees flee, it’s often believers—both local and those sending support from foreign countries—who respond with aid, care, and love. 

I know this is a difficult issue, but here’s where I land: while we were yet sinners, Jesus laid down His life for us. Are we willing to lay down our own lives for others? Are we willing to love these people?

GO: Our church has a center that helps refugees develop their English, computer, and other skills. Volunteers are always welcome to come short term and teach. Contact Kristina Gleason,volunteer coordinator, at 765.671.7227 or email via@wgm.org for more information. 

Prayer Calendar August 21-27-2016

Coming tomorrow on The Call blog:

"How would you feel if your homeland was so torn apart by violence and war that you were forced to leave? Images of your hometown play on the news, showing injured neighbors and obliterated buildings. What kind of future could you possibly build for your family when you have lost everything?"

Pray for peace in the Middle East.

Immigration and the Image of God

Zach Motts, Missionary, Japan
The Call, July-September 2016

In the very beginning, before there was Islam or Christianity or even Judaism, the Bible tells us that strange opening story about humanity being made in the image of God. This is an incredible, terrifying way to begin a holy book. Rivers of ink have been spilt attempting to plumb the meaning of this phrase: “made in the image of God.”How do we unpack such a potent description of humanity’s meaning and purpose? The God who refuses to be represented by idols of stone, metal, or wood chooses to be expressed through you, me, and us. We are the image of God.

We barely get one chapter into the Bible and we are drawn up short by this profound idea. Even without the rest of the Bible, there are shocking ethical implications in this brief statement. What if every person I meet is made in the image of God, no matter who they are, where they are from, or how they choose to live? What would that mean? 

If I went to Washington, D.C. and defaced the statue of Abraham Lincoln, people would see that act as meaning something about what I think about Lincoln’s legacy or about Lincoln himself. What happens if I deface the image of God? What happens if I look into the face of the person in front of me and I fear, hate, neglect, ignore, or reject that person? If that person is the image of God, then I am wounding, dishonoring, and rejecting the God represented by that image. 

Where does this leave us in a world on the move? What are we supposed to say when the conversation surrounding immigration turns toward wars, walls, and exclusion? These are tough questions, but the Church must find different answers because we tell a different story. If every family that is bombed, every child that starves to death, and every fleeing person who drowns in the Mediterranean is made in the image of God, then it is very difficult for me to call myself a follower of this God while answering the needs in the world with wars, walls, and exclusion. I am a missionary, so I am biased, but I believe the Church must find other options. “Whatever you did for one of the least of these….” 

ACT: Karl Barth, one of the most prolific and influential theologians of the 20th century, said, “A preacher should preach with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other.” There’s a lot of wisdom in that thinking. Take time this week to reacquaint yourself with the creation of humanity and then read a news article on immigration. Reflect or journal on the insights you gained from reading the two together.

Prayer Calendar August 14-20,2016

Coming tomorrow on The Call blog:

"In the very beginning, before there was Islam or Christianity or even Judaism, the Bible tells us that strange opening story about humanity being made in the image of God. This is an incredible, terrifying way to begin a holy book. Rivers of ink have been spilt attempting to plumb the meaning of this phrase: "made in the image of God." How do we unpack such a potent description of humanity's meaning and purpose? The God who refuses to be represented by idols of stone, metal, or wood chooses to be expressed through you, me, and us. We are the image of God."

Pray that God will give you His perspective and heart towards foreigners.

Are You Taking the Long Way Around?

Brian Kushman, Missionary, Hispanic Ministries USA
The Call, July-September 2016

Missions has traditionally been focused on strangers in another land. But this begs the question: “What about the strangers who are among us?” In Exodus 22:21, God says, “You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him,” (NKJV) and in 12:48-49, “And when a stranger dwells with you and wants to keep the Passover to the Lord,…then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as a native of the land.” This teaches us that if a stranger wants to worship the Lord with us, we should welcome them with open arms. 

Leviticus 19:33-34 states: “The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love him as yourself.” We think of this as a New Testament teaching, but from the very beginning, God wanted His people to love their neighbor as themselves. Deuteronomy 10:17-19 says, “For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe. He administers justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing. Therefore love the stranger.…”

In the New Testament, Acts 1:8 states that the Holy Spirit will give us power to be witnesses for Christ “in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” How does this relate to us? I suggest that our Jerusalem are those who are culturally like us and geographically close to us. Our Judea are those who are culturally like us but geographically farther away. Our Samaria are those who are culturally different but geographically close, and the ends of the earth are culturally different and geographically far. 

As the body of Christ, we need to recognize that we are not only called to reach out to those who are geographically far and culturally different, but also to those who are culturally different and geographically close. These could be immigrants or students from another country, migrants who have come to work, or even refugees fleeing war or persecution. These are our Samaria. Let’s not neglect this aspect of ministry.

But reaching out to people outside our own culture isn’t easy. In the time of the New Testament church, Jews avoided Samaria. Instead of traveling on the west side of the Jordan River through Samaria, which would be more direct, there was such prejudice that many Jews crossed over to the east side and took the long way around to avoid what they perceived as those who were undesirable.

Christ set a different example. He took advantage of every opportunity to minister to those with spiritual and physical needs, as in John 4 when He did what was socially unacceptable and talked with a woman of ill repute from another culture. Because of that interaction, many Samaritans came to believe in Him. 

Missions is more about crossing cultural boundaries rather than geographical borders. Christ ministered to those who were culturally different from Himself but were geographically close. His apostles eventually had this vision as well; Peter and John made a special trip to Samaria to confirm the Samaritans that had been baptized under Philip's ministry (Acts 8:14-17).

Christ promised to enable us, by the power of the Spirit, to be witnesses for Him, even to those who are culturally different but geographically close. Who is your Samaria? You see, “It is not the person from the radically different culture on the other side of the world that is hardest to love, but the nearby neighbor whose skin color, language, rituals, values, ancestry, history, and customs are different from one’s own” (“Hatred between Jews and Samaritans”).

Let’s follow Christ’s example and partner together to minister on the west side of Jordan!

ACT: Christ has called each of us to help the oppressed and to preach the gospel—essentially to be a missionary wherever we are. Not sure where to start? Check out the World Go! Manual, a Bible study for missions. Learn more and purchase a copy here. 

Prayer Calendar August 7-13,2016

Coming tomorrow on The Call blog:

Missions has traditionally been focused on strangers in another land. But this begs the question: "What about the strangers who are  among us?” In Exodus 22:21, God says, “You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him,” (NKJV) and in 12:48-49, “And when a stranger dwells with you and wants to keep the Passover to the Lord,…then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as a native of the land.” 

August 7-13: Pray for Brian Kushman as he trains and equips Hispanic pastors in the United States.

Refugee Life: Inhuman and Miserable

Boaz Niyinyumva, Resident at Chogoria Hospital, Kenya
The Call, July-September 2016

In October 1993, civil war broke out in Burundi, causing thousands of Burundians to seek refuge in neighboring countries and many others to be displaced within Burundi. I was 9 years old at that time, and I was obliged to live in both situations.

We were abandoned in our own country. I was considered to be impure because of my race and ethnic group. The dominant group said that I didn’t deserve to live. My family and I had to leave our house and go to live in another province within Burundi where there were other “impure” races. My siblings and I stopped schooling and my father lost his job. We had to struggle for daily living by doing things that we have never done. We had no medical assistance, no clean water, and no supplies. 

After some months, we had to flee to the Democratic Republic of the Congo because the crisis had become worse. Being a refugee in a foreign country was my worst experience ever. Besides lacking the daily needs to survive, we were mistreated by locals—soldiers were arresting Burundian refugees every day just because they wanted money from us. For our release, we were obliged to sell part of our food provisions given by UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) so we could pay the soldiers. My father and brother were taken several times to prison. Several Burundian young women were raped by soldiers and locals, but if anyone reported this to UNHCR officials, they were taken to prison.

As children, we were often emotionally abused by the local children and even bitten. We were like prisoners, with no free movements. We ate whatever we could get. We were not allowed to swim in Lake Tanganyika at the same place as the locals. 

As refugees, we were considered to be a threat to the peace of the hosting country and to the security of its citizens. So we were moved from big cities to remote areas, far from the main city to a bigger refugee camp. At 11 years old, I saw people dying because of lack of medical care or food or they were killed by soldiers. I had to work to help my dad make money for us to survive. Soon after that, my father and brother died, probably killed by the soldiers. We still are not sure.

I would not wish for anyone to be a refugee, because the life of a refugee in some African countries is inhuman and miserable. Schooling, food, clean water, and clothing became a dream. Discrimination and the stigma of being a refugee became part of daily life.

No one should be a refugee.

PRAY: Boaz’s story is not an isolated event. Many, many families face these same challenges and dream of food, clean water, and clothing. Pray that God will provide for their needs today and that He will use His Church to impact the lives of refugees around the world. 

Prayer Calendar July 31- August 6,2016

Coming tomorrow on The Call blog:

"In October 1993, civil war broke out in Burundi, causing thousands of Burundians to seek refuge in neighboring countries and many others to be displaced within Burundi. I was 9 years old at that time, and I was obliged to live in both situations."

Pray for God to be present in the desperate circumstances refugees find themselves in.