Johnhwilburn.org

In late 2021 (around October) I decided to stop communicating with individuals on Facebook. My communication from that point would primarily come from blog updates shared on Facebook, and direct email.

My reason for this is simple……

The goal of communicating through Facebook often ends up trying to get as many “likes” or “shares” as possible. While the true goal should be clearly sharing the needs of the mission field.

Since then I’ve returned to communication on Facebook, but only using my ministry updates group. This means it’s only seen as those people who are members of that specific group (prayer supporters of my ministry).

The interesting thing is I feel less successful since making this change (lots less likes and comments) but I know this form of communication is much more successful in the long run.

Because communication isn’t about me

Of course the communication itself has to be about me in some way, but I am not the focus. In basic terms. It’s not a show putting a spotlight on my own accomplishments. Instead my online presence is meant to share the lessons, experiences, heartaches, and blessings from the mission field.

And for that to happen, I must be real.

Sadly missions isn’t always happy or one effortless blessing after another.

1. Somedays you fail
2. Somedays you become discouraged
3. Somedays you are weak (physically or emotionally)
4. Somedays you want to quit
   

Real online communication reflects real life instead of saying everything is awesome when it truly isn’t. And that kind of communication done effectively (not for sympathy) gives prayer partners a glimpse into the daily struggles a missionary experiences.

Somedays I’m tempted to use Facebook as my major communication platform again, because it will get lots of responses.

But it’s far better to share real life with a select group of prayer partners online.

As I write this on April 13, conditions outside are like the Sahara desert. Any car driving by creates huge clouds, and we’ve had more than a few “dust storms.”

Only this isn’t dust….it’s volcanic ash

Since January, the La Soufrière volcano has been showing signs of increased activity. This led the government to encourage individuals on both extreme ends of the island to prepare for evacuation.

Things calmed down in February and people began to relax. But in recent weeks there was talked to increased danger at the volcano. Again individuals in danger zones were encouraged to prepare themselves.

Last Thursday morning the threat level of the volcano itself was raised, and those in dangerous areas were encouraged to prepare for evacuation. This was followed by an order to evacuate on Thursday afternoon around 4:00.

I had talked to Vincentian friends leading up this this evacuation about how to prepare (my area didn’t need to evacuate). Most told me just to have some food and water set aside, and in a few days things would be okay. This belief was based on the last eruption of the volcano in 1979 that brought a small amount of ashes.

when the first eruption hit around 9:00 Friday morning many people (myself included) stopped to take photos of the large mushroom cloud. Saturday morning I opened the door to see everything covered by ash, which looked surprisingly like snowfall.

I spent much of Sunday cleaning the church and my yard of ashes. And then yesterday morning things were somewhat back to normal with people out in the road doing their business.

Then came the two eruptions this morning

Thankfully we are safe with water that was turned on this morning, and electricity. However, in talking with many Vincentians, I have heard the same phrase.

“This is much worse than 1979”

And if you listen closely enough, you’ll hear another statement

We weren’t ready

many people expecting things to be just like they were in 79, did not take the threat seriously enough. Honestly I wasn’t prepared for the amount of ash experienced, and how many days we were going to be without water. Friday I spent much of the day using water for cleaning and other purposes, expecting it to come back on Sunday instead of Tuesday.

The Lord reminded me through this how many times we as individuals don’t take the warnings of God seriously. The Lord warns us about our sinful actions, but we put off repentance, believing the Lord will continue to care for us. Thankfully He often does show mercy, but in Love, the Lord sometimes shows us we should have listened to the warning.

I’m thankful for this experience because it brings some excitement to my life. But more importantly, its an important reminder to listen to Gods patient warnings.

Early Thursday morning I put a simple post on Facebook asking friends to pray as I looked for something I’d misplaced.

I was totally shocked when the post got forty-two likes, and twenty-one comments!

People with much more serious problems than something they’d lost prayed for my need, and then checked back in the next day to see if it was found.

Though the list item wasn’t found (it can be replaced) I’m still incredibly thankful for the experience since the Lord used it to show me individuals are interested in the random (unimportant experiences of my life).

It’s easy to get into the habit of only sharing exciting or moving experiences from the mission field. Theres nothing wrong with sharing these experiences of course, but when they become the only thing you share, it creates a false reality.

Even worse, you find yourself looking for amazing experiences to share every day. This will eventually mean communicating for likes and comments instead of honestly sharing your heart.

The greatest problem with only sharing the big experiences is friends care about the random experiences just as much as the spectacular ones.

I am going to remain using my blog and email as the major form of communication since it’s most effective…..but with the Lord’s help, I plan to take a step or two back into Facebook.

Thanks for showing me you not only care about the huge needs of my life, but whether or not I found something that has been lost.

Editors Note: Please note that all identifying marks from the above debit card has been removed in the picture.

Last week while teaching a class on the Major Prophets, the Lord reminded me of what’s commonly called a “cash shake.”

I’m not totally sure why it came to my mind, probably because the college students are working on getting money for their bills.

As a missionary on deputation raising support It was a common occurrence for someone to shake my hand, and by doing so also hand me cash (why it’s called a cash shake). This is normally used for personal expenses like fuel, and food.

Though it wasn’t a lot, that money was an incredible blessing to me…..

The blessing was in the fact that after hearing about the work that God had called me to do, the Holy Spirit led these individuals to personally give me those funds.

The cash shake is also a blessing because it gives from what they have, which often isn’t much.

I like to explain it this way…..

Say a man with $500 gave you $100, and then a man with $5 gave you $3.

Who gave you more?

Technically it’s the one who gave $100, but the $3 was a much more precious gift. Because he gave sacrificially.

The Lord through this reminded me there are many individuals for whom $10 placed in their hand with a big smile will be a HUGE blessing.

And challenged me to live a simpler life so that I can put more money in others hands.

This week I began teaching a class on Major Prophets at a Bible College in SVG. While enjoyable, this is without a doubt the most challenging course I’ve ever taught.

The reason why is because of the HUGE subject matter. The class 180 chapters of Scripture (Isaiah through Daniel).

We were going through the notes (220 pages worth) when a student turned to me and asked me where I got that material….

I turned and calmly told him “I wrote it.”

now the truth is I relied on textbooks to compile the notes, but the work itself was done by me through weeks of research.

Of course the second question was, “where do you find the time to write those notes?”

Thankfully I had a West Virginia house

For about a month during my medical furlough in July and August I stayed with my parents at a small house my dad was born and raised in. This small house was a huge blessing from God because it gave me large chunks of time for study, and research.

My morning ritual stayed the same

1. Roll out of bed
2. Step over the dog in the doorway
3. As quietly as possible, walk into the kitchen trying not to wake anyone else up
4. Turn on the coffee
5. Check news for fifteen minutes or so (enough time to fully wake up)
6. And with my first cup of coffee, spend about 2 1/2 hours on class notes
   

I am incredibly thankful for a quiet environment with family where study can be done, and even wrote about everyone needing a “West Virginia House” over the summer. At the same, I’m convicted about the lack of deep Bible study and research that have been done while back in SVG.

The thing about deep study is it doesn’t come easily. It takes lots of time and mental effort, but that hard work brings great benefits.

So how can I take part in deep study without a West Virginia House?

Make it a top priority

Satan loves to offer us many things to distract us from deep study. Some of these things may even be good in and of themselves, but they don’t bring the rich rewards of deeply studying Scripture.

I may not have a West Virginia house where hours of uninterrupted study can take place. But I can put aside every distraction, and dig deeply into the Word of God on the mission field.

Last week a friend came by in the morning to have a chat with me about his step-son. It was sadly a story that I’d heard many times before.

1. He didn’t have respect for him, or his biological father who he lived with
2. He regularly stole from his step-father
3. He mistreated his bothers and sisters
4. And most importantly, he didn’t listen to anybody
   

This sad story gave me one more illustration of an important truth.

Boys need fathers!

I doubt anyone would question that fact, the problem is, fewer and fewer young men have the fathers they desperately need.

Though I love the community where the Lord has called me, it has it’s problems (every place does). One of the biggest burdens God has placed upon my heat is the fathers of Saint Vincent.

It isn’t that the fathers aren’t there……instead they choose not to be fathers.

It is difficult to find work here since there aren’t many consistent jobs. Many men have to spend the day doing one odd job after another, which is obviously exhausting.

Yet once that work is done they don’t return home to take care of their children,

Instead its to the local rum shop where they will drink all night.

Worst of all this gives young men like this step-son a toxic view of manhood

1. Men don’t protect those in their families
2. Men are violent
3. Men spend most of their time at the rum shop
4. Men if they can’t find work will sit around doing nothing all day
5. And men don’t let ANYBODY tell them what to do!
   

With role models like this, it’s no wonder why boys become incredibly rebellious in their teenage years!

In a culture without fathers, the Lord calls male Believers to become spiritual fathers.

A spiritual father is someone who gains the respect of a boy at any early age, and patterns for him what a Godly man looks like. Part of this is leading them to Christ, and then discipling them with Scriptural truths.

The best I’ve ever seen do this is Pastor Alan Berry, veteran missionary in the Caribbean. Countless of the men in my community fondly remember his teaching and training them in their younger years. Some of those he won and discipled were referred to as “Berry’s son.”

Pastor Berry through everything gave them a Biblical view of manhood

1. A man who protects his wife, and those under his care
2. A man who is calm, but never weak
3. A man who spends his time doing hard work
4. A man who displays an attitude of humility instead of arrogance
   

Reflecting on this I know the world needs many more Pastor Berry’s!

While I’m not quite on his level (working on it) I am using every opportunity God gives to teach and train the younger generation of boys while their hearts are still tender.

And by Gods grace, I can carry on the legacy of showing boys what a true man is like.

Yesterday afternoon a friend came by my gate and shouted my name. When I came out, he asked “have you cooked today?”

In other words, “I’m hungry!”

My friend was asking for food in a joking way. But the truth is, things are becoming incredibly hard in communities of SVG. Because consistent jobs are hard for find, you spend lots of time every trying to do odd jobs in order to make enough money for food. And sadly there are days you go hungry.

I’m reminded of a woman who shortly after the volcano eruption in April, walked up from the main road screaming very loudly “I’m hungry!”

Though not everyone is as vocal about it, many can say the same thing.

The amount of hungry or needy people can be overwhelming since I cannot feed everyone of them…..

But I CAN feed some of them

There will always be challenges of society without an easy fix (poverty, racism, injustice). When meeting these physical needs our giving sometimes seems incredibly significant, just a drop in the bucket. The small amount of people we can help can be incredibly discouraging.

Satan tells us our small ministry isn’t accomplishing anything. But he wants us to forget that God takes great glory in using small things.

I’m reminded of the five barley cakes and small fish that Christ used to feed 5,000 men, and possibly closer to 20,000 people including women and children. The boy probably felt his small lunch didn’t make a difference (Phillip certainly didn’t think it would really help).

But they gave it to Jesus…..

And Christ did a spectacular thing with it.

The truth is it isn’t my job to fix the problems of society. Thats God’s job! My job is to minister to all those who I can with what the Lord has given to me.

The darkness of this sin-cursed world won’t be removed until Christ creates a new-heaven, and new-earth. We cannot destroy the darkness, but we can shine brightly in it.

As a missionary I have lots of conversations with individuals in the community (especially men) about their relationship with God.

Eventually they almost always make the same statement….

“I am going to start coming to church again!”

This response shows their emphasis on outer things like baptism, church membership, or wearing church clothes (shirt and tie) instead of faith in Christ.

But in their hearts, they know those works aren’t enough.

Friday afternoon I was spending some time with a friend who used to attend church, and was baptised. But when asked where he was going when he died, my friend immediately said “hell.”

Though he had done all of the things right, he knew that there was something missing.

The importance of a personal relationship with Christ instead of good works affects the other side of this situation as well. There are many “religious” people in Barrouallie who attend church, are baptised, and do all the right things. But they have never accepted Christ as their Saviour.

Good works are meant to be a fruit of Salvation, not a foundation for it.

Both the backsliders, and religious are focusing on works while ignoring the most important thing. And neither knows Christ.

And it’s our responsibility to show them works aren’t enough.

There are lots of ways to do this, but I have found one truth especially effective.

We will all answer to God for ourselves.

I’m not referring here to the Great White Throne judgement, since Believers don’t experience it. Instead we will all have to give an account of our lives, and tell God why we deserve to be in Heaven.

The thing about that question (why should I let you into Heaven?) is there’s only one real answer….Jesus is my Saviour.

Nothing else satisfies the Holiness of God.

1. Not Bible reading
2. Not church membership
3. Not tithes
4. Not prayer
5. Not wearing church clothes
6. Not “living a good life”
   

As so many build their spiritual houses on the shifting sand of good works, we must point them to the one and only solid rock. The Lord Jesus Christ.

Last Sunday al man came to visit, and emotionally begged me to start an outreach in the most poverty stricken, and violent area of Barrouallie.

He had grown up in that area, and was heartbroken to see how it had changed for the worse (particularly the young people). I couldn’t help but be moved as he kept pleading “come to ”

Since then I’ve been thinking and praying about how the Lord would allow me to reach that area…..

At the same time, part of me is anxious because reaching this area would definitely be a challenge.

It’s easy in missions work to continue serving where you’ve established yourself.

1. Respect has been earned
2. Souls have been led to Christ
3. Your discipline and training Believers
4. And the ministry is growing
   

However God calls us away from the field that produces fruit, to work in the hard stony soil.

This doesn’t mean I completely abandon the established work. But I am continually looking on the horizon for fields that the Lord is calling me to reach next.

Reaching these hard fields means starting the “plowing form of ministry” all over again. This emphasises lots of hard work, and very little fruit.

It’s no wonder we would rather stay in a ministry that yields fruit!

So why leave the fruitful ministry to plow in the hard field?

Because so many have not accepted Christ.

Paul was consumed by a mission to plant as many churches as possible during his life. He never stopped going out into the new fields (even though it put him in danger), and at the end of his life could say “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”

Christ in the same way went from town to town proclaiming the Gospel to as many as would hear. His goal wasn’t to have a comfortable ministry, but to offer as many people as possible Salvation.

So like Paul and Christ we must leave the fruitful land, pick up our tools, and plant the seeds of the Gospel in the hard soil. Knowing that the Gospel will bear fruit.

Last week was tough for me because I had to quit meeting with some young people who I’d been working with for a while because their hearts had become hard.

This is actually a very common theme. Children listen as I evangelise and disciple them, but eventually befriend young people who think it’s funny to be rebellious and disrespectful.

I used to pursue a child who had become hard-hearted, but eventually learned thats as waste of my time.

Because it isn’t my job to break their hard heart….

That’s God’s job.

The major reason why I find myself walking away from hard-hearted individuals is the Lord provides tender hearted ones to take their place.

Unfortunately it’s easy to focus so much on the hard-hearted youth, that the tender-hearted one is ignored.

I’ve used this illustration before, but it explains my point well. Often the problem student in the classroom gets almost all of the attention from the teacher and other students. This attention is a reward for bad behaviour, while the student who does the right thing gets very little attention. Eventually many of them become rebellious because it gives them attention.

In the same way, using our energy to recognise the young person or adult who is honouring the Lord is a much better investment of energy than trying to break a hardened heart.

We walk away from hardened hearts because God is the one who closes doors of ministry, and always opens up new ones. As someone who has spent a lot of time trying to open up a door that God has opened, let me tell you it never works!

It will always be hard seeing those I’ve poured my heart into reject the Lord, and wander into sin like the prodigal son. But I let them go. Because they will return with a humble heart, and transformed life.

Last week I finished reading “Imperfect Disciple” by Jared Wilson, and it made me think about a common mis-conception Christians have about their relationship with God.

Wilson emphasises the Gospel which calls us to repent of our sins, and turn to Christ for forgiveness. This is very different from our sinful heart that emphasises “cleaning yourself up first.”

Satan knows he cannot remove our Salvation, but he can compromise our testimony. One of the greatest ways he does this is by making the christian life about works, or our own strength.

When we fail (and we all do) Satan encourages us to work on self-development (or clean ourselves up) instead of turning to God in repentance. Obviously this just make things worse because we could never really make ourselves clean.

True transformation can only take place when we confess our sinful weakness, and turn to God in repentance.

There was a day last week when I chose laziness over doing the work that I knew God wanted me to accomplish.

Conviction came to my heart because of this laziness, which was followed by the temptation of Satan. He said “you need to work harder on self-discipline!” I immediately started working on a battle-plan to attack my laziness.

But then stopped, and remembered my sin-nature will always choose comfort over the will of God.

So instead of trying harder I confessed my weakness to God, changed habits that triggered laziness, and re-committed myself to prayer when the temptation of laziness came instead of relying on my own strength.

Just as Christ had to wash the disciples dirty feet, we need to return to our Father for daily cleansing while walking through this wicked world. A cleansing not of the outer man, but the heart.

Monday it will officially be two-weeks since I began using my website Johnwilburn.org for communication with prayer partners instead of Facebook. To be honest its been kind of hard, but I know this change will develop closer relationships with them long-term.

This decision partially came from the fact that Facebook was taken up far too much of my time and attention. The main reason however, is I wanted a stronger relationship with prayer supporters.

Communication through websites like Facebook or Twitter are sent as short updates (like a text message) to friends. There’s nothing wrong with this, but it shouldn’t be our primary form of communication.

The point is, you cannot build a relationship on text messages.

actually you can…but not a very strong one.

As a missionary God calls me to have strong relationships with those who support, or pray for my ministry. This kind of relationship comes through quality communication.

1. Communication that is constant
2. Communication that is transparent (shows both the good and bad of missions life)
3. Communication that is personal (shared directly with specific prayer partners)
4. And communication that is deep (shares updates in detail instead of just sharing short bursts of information)
   

I’m still doing some fine-tuning on using the website instead of Facebook for communication. But am beginning to take the next step in this process by embracing email instead of social-media as my major communication tool. This is the best way to share quality communication.

To be honest it’s still tough because I selfishly enjoy seeing likes and comments on my Facebook posts. But I understand that strong relationships quality communication develops is far more important than how many likes I get.

Last Friday I came home at 6:00 after a day of ministry fully intending on catching up on some work after supper.

Instead I ended up in bed at 7:30.

I don’t mean lying on bed reading a book or watching TV. I mean turn out the lights, and go to bed at 7:30!

This weariness is partially because I get up early, and use those quiet hours for heart preparation. But the real reason is ministry (and life) is exhausting.

After a day of hustling from one place to another my energy would always be gone by 7:00. This isn’t a sinful thing of course, but it started to result in lots of tasks being unfinished, and placed more pressure on me the next day.

Which is where cat naps come in

A “cat nap” is a short nap (less than thirty minutes) used to restore energy during the day. I’’ve already made one cat nap part of my daily schedule after lunch, and because my energy still seems to struggle at night, am beginning to take a second after dinner.

Creating habits that restore energy during the day is absolutely necessary because ministry takes energy.

1. It takes energy to study the Word of God
2. It takes energy to reach the lost in my community
3. It takes energy to disciple children
4. It takes energy to have a plan for the day, and follow it
   

The thing about energy (and willpower) is they are limited resources. If we aren’t carefully restoring energy or strength, then it will be finished long before the day is.

This means taking our physical health (energy level) very seriously through exercise, healthy eating, rest, drinking water, and taking vitamins/supplements.

There is no shame in turning the lights out at 8:00 every once in a while. But most nights should find me finishing strong for the Lord.

A few weeks ago I was awakened at 3:00 in the morning by my phone ringing. By the time I’d realised what was happening, recognized it was a friend, and answered the phone they’d hung up.

I figured they had called me by accident…..

But a few minutes later they were knocking on my door.

I sat down on my front steps as a friend described in tears a crisis that he was going through. As he talked I listened carefully, and prayed.

In that prayer I thanked God he came to me in a time of need

And asked the Lord to keep my mouth shut.

There are moments for us to speak and teach or exhort someone, and moments for us to be silent. When someone comes to your door at 3:00 in the morning, it’s a time for silence.

We are silent because they know what they’re supposed to do. What they need is someone who will listen carefully, and help them do what they are supposed to do.

1. By allowing them to vent or be angry
2. By asking questions
3. By trying to understand the situation instead of trying to fix the situation
4. And by pointing them back to God’s truth
   

These listening moments are about bringing perspective. Often in a crisis we are emotional, overcome by Satan’s attacks, and have lost sight of God’s goodness. Therefore we need someone to calmly and patiently put our eyes back on God.

Satan knows how powerful these listening moments are, so he encourages us to speak when we should actually listen.

Speaking (telling someone what they need to do) instead of listening often proves disastrous

1. The person is not in the right mind to receive the truth of God
2. Instead of calming things down, we make them more frustrated
3. We also become frustrated because they aren’t “listening to us”
4. And a great ministry opportunity is wasted
   

The important thing about listening moments is knowing a time will soon come when God wants you to speak.

Later the next morning my friend came by in a much calmer state of mind. We were able to discuss how the Lord was working in his life through that crisis, and what he needed to do.

Since that time I’ve spent a lot more time sitting on my front steps listening to him explain the frustrations of his crisis (sometimes in anger). But those moments always lead to a time for speaking when he with a submissive spirit listens to what God has to say.

A few Saturdays ago a neighbour living beside the church sent someone to the house, and asked me to come over so he could “show me something.” I came over with another friend and immediately realised the problem.

There is a church wall built on our boundary line, and shared with the neighbour. Whoever had built this wall originally (not myself or the former pastor) was only interested in getting it up as quickly as possible, so they didn’t put any steel in the blocks to provide support.

This creates a serious problem since the wall itself can not only weaken quickly, but also fall on someone and injure them.

When he called me daylight could be clearly seen between the the bricks in the wall, meaning there was danger of the wall itself falling on someone.

Right away I contacted church members about the problem since it was a Saturday, and scheduled a church meeting the next day. We decided to hire a man who had attended for many years, and was a very good mason (wall builder).

That afternoon the mason inspected the weakened wall, and told me what materials would be needed for him to rebuild it.

Thankfully church members helped me get in contact with the proper people so that by that Thursday, all of the material was ready to go. And after another meeting on Sunday, work began last Tuesday.

It took less than a day to tear down the portion of the wall that needed to be rebuilt because it was so weak. By the end of the day, the foundation for the new wall had already been laid!

The next two days were spent building up the wall itself with steel and reinforcement so that the same problem won’t happen again.

By Friday he only needed to put on the finishing touches, and even out areas of the wall that had been damaged by rainfall. By noon the wall was done, and everyone was paid!

There is so much to thank the Lord for in this situation

1. I am thankful the neighbour pointed out the problem since it was only noticeable on his side
2. I am thankful the wall itself held, and didn’t injure anyone
3. I am thankful church members stepped up and helped me find people to provide material, and do the work
4. I am thankful for a worker who did very good work for a fair price
5. I am thankful for good weather while the work went on (little rain)
6. And I am thankful for a strong wall that will last for many years
   

There will be crisis situations in life (like a wall that may fall down) but we can be calm in the crisis because we know the Lord is with us.

About three-weeks ago I was informed of a problem with a wall our church shares with a neighbouring property. Whoever built it originally didn’t put a column, or steel rebar into the wall itself. Because of this, the wall was weakened on the neighbours side.

If we didn’t deal with the problem, that wall could fall on someone, and seriously hurt them.

After discussing it with church members and having two meetings, we hired a local Believer to tear down the wall, and then build it back.

I drove to a nearby friends house Tuesday morning to pick up a shovel. And upon returning found the neighbour standing in the road shouting very loudly.

Evidently some of her plants had been cut so that the wall could be torn down. She was very upset because nobody called and asked permission to cut the plants. I could understand her frustration, but also realised the plants had to be removed in order for the wall to come down.

I jumped out of my car (leaving it parked in the middle of the road) and walked over to the neighbour. As we discussed what had happened, and she vented her frustration, things began to calm down.

The entire conversation took about ten-minutes, and we haven’t had a problem with her since.

The interesting thing is many Vincentians didn’t understand why I didn’t shout back at her, and am even planning to buy her a replacement plant with my own money.

The answer is very simple…..

As a missionary I am called to bring calmness into conflict.

Sadly the normal way to deal with a conflict in my community is not to meet with the other individual. Instead you stand about seven feet from them and shout loudly enough for people up and down the street to hear. It’s not uncommon to see individuals standing in the road involved in a very loud argument.

This should NEVER be the response of a Christian!

Instead we calm the situation

1. By listening carefully to their complaint
2. By understanding what the real problem is
3. By apologising for our part in the conflict (even if they had a part in it as well)
4. And by doing what it takes to make things right
   

It isn’t just about calmness though…..

Christians bring calmness to chaos because our public testimony for Christ is more important than being “right.”

I could have argued with the woman, and explained the plants had to be removed in order to break the wall down properly. But it would have done great damage to my testimony in the community.

When dealing with conflict, the question we must ask isn’t “who is right?”, but “how can I make this right?”

Recently I’ve been getting some things fixed on my car. A new alternator last month, then new brakes, bearings, and bushings this month.

I’m very thankful for a local mechanic who does work very quickly for a cheap price. Usually it only takes a day to get things fixed up.

At the same time, I need to learn how to do things like this myself.

An interesting thing about living on the mission field is you need to fix things yourself.

1. There is no Lowes or Home Depot
2. There are no automotive superstores
3. There aren’t a huge amount of mechanics who are trustworthy
   

The problem with this is I’m bad at fixing things….

Really, really bad!

This isn’t a disrespect to myself since the Lord has simply gifted me in other areas. So I’d much rather pay someone locally who can do the work properly instead of trying to do it myself.

The problem with this is a big part of missions is learning to do new things, particularly new things you aren’t very good at.

There is nothing wrong with not being good at something….there is a lot wrong with not not trying to do something.

Hidden beneath my paying someone to do a job is an embarrassment about my lack of skill with doing it. It’s just easier to outsource the job instead of attracting attention of others by my poor attempts.

But it’s only through trial and failure that a person grows.

To put it a practical way for myself, the more I try to fix things, the better I will get at fixing things. And someone who sets aside their “male ego” for a few moments and attempts something new gains the respect of many.

It will probably be a very long time till I do some work on my car….

But I can still practice fixing small things, and learn from those who do it better than me.

As the mechanic fixed my bushing Monday morning I sat, watched, and learned. I didn’t get involved at all ¹ but wanted to learn how it was done. The funny thing is it wasn’t as hard as it looked.

I’m grateful the Lord reminded me anyone can excel at what they do well. Only the courageous get better at what they don’t do well.

1. Not quite ready for that yet ↩

I recently discovered just how much I hate silence. It began when my Amazon Alexa charger broke last month, because you cannot get one here I have to wait till the new one arrives in November.

It only took a day or two to realise I use the Alexa for many different things.

1. To wake me up in the morning
2. To play music while I am at home
3. For listening to audio books
4. And as a speaker when I watch TV
   

Suddenly my life was filled with silence….and I hated it!

As the days passed I began to think about why silence bothered me so much. Over time it became clear that my mind was accustomed to being continually entertained.

A few weeks ago I became very convicted about boredom leading to social media apps (and far too much scrolling). This led to deleting my Facebook, and Twitter apps from my phone. In a post about that experience I referred to social media as distractions, but they are actually “competing voices.”

Satan through technology and entertainment throws as many voices as he can at us. Because the loud voices of the world can drown out the still small voice of God.

Losing my Alexa made me step back and think about how many times I entertained myself instead of actually thinking about Gods will for my life.

Though It’s a work in progress I am beginning to enjoy the silence

1. It gives time for prayer
2. It allows me to meditate on Scripture
3. It keeps me focused on the job in front of me instead of becoming distracted
4. And most importantly, it allows me to listen for the Lords leading
   

There is nothing wrong with entertainment that glorifies God. But we must be very careful about the amount of voices that we allow to speak.

Monday morning I was doing some work around the church, and noticed a man sitting on some nearby steps. I immediately recognised him as someone who loves to make controversial statements about Christianity.

In recent months he has told me:

1. Jesus never rose from the dead
2. Jesus was just a man
3. Men wrote the Bible, not God
4. And there’s no heaven or hell
   

After a few minutes, he called me over and we started talking. And of course he began saying incredibly blasphemous things just trying to get me angry.

But I didn’t respond…….

It wasn’t because I didn’t want to, but I knew from experience this man had no interest in understanding Gods truth. He just wanted to start an argument.

So instead of arguing with him, I changed the flow of the conversation itself.

As he listed sin after sin every Christian commits (among them racism, oppression, and brainwashing) I calmly turned and asked him, “am I a racist?” He immediately responded “no not you John,” and then continued explaining how every Christian takes part in these sins.

The flaw in his logic is painfully clear, if ALL CHRISTIANS are racist, then obviously I would have to be! Yet he knew FOR A FACT that I wasn’t.

Two more times he started in on his blasphemous talk…..and two more times I pointed out how foolish it was since I didn’t do the things he was listing.

Normally I don’t mind getting in conversations like this, but I don’t with him because he refuses to listen. He just wants to start an argument and yell about the sins of Christians.

Walking up a hill yesterday a man began to very loudly shout how religion is the source of all violence and slavery. Interestingly, he decided to shout this while walking beside me 🙂

Again I walked silently beside him listening as he went on and on about the blasphemous acts of Christians. After a while, I turned and calmly asked if I had any slaves. “Yes!” He told me, “because you enslave the people of the church”! I smiled, told him they all came on their own free will, and asked if he’d ever come to the church.

Of course he hadn’t.

There is nothing wrong with apologetics. But when someone with a hardened heart just wants to argue, the wisest thing we can do is keep walking.

In ministry I experience things referred to as “God moments.” These are special moments when the heart of an individual is especially tender towards the things of the Lord.

The thing about a God moment is it doesn’t last for long….

Which is sadly something I forgot Saturday

There is an unsaved friend who I’ve been sharing Christ with for a few years. He’s incredibly close to accepting the Lord, but not quite there yet. Last Saturday he came by to visit, and I knew that he had something on his mind.

He told me a story about riding a motorbike when he was young and getting into a wreck. The wreck itself should have resulted in some serious injuries, but he ended up walking out of the hospital. A cousin who he’d been with reminded him of the story.

My friend was deeply burdened remember that story, and kept saying “God must have kept me alive for a reason!”

We talked about the Gospel, and his need for Christ. He knew this was needed, but said “something is holding me back.” I explained that is Satan, because he doesn’t want anybody to be saved.

After talking some more it became clear the Lord was really dealing with his heart. So I encouraged him to pray and think about what the devil was doing to keep him from Salvation. We were supposed to meet Tuesday, so I was fully expecting him to accept the Lord then.

That was a mistake…….

Tuesday ended up being cancelled till Thursday, and then our busy schedules didn’t allow for much time in our weekly Bible study.

The God moment was gone!

I thought a lot about our conversation last Saturday this week. In a way, it was wise to allow the Holy Spirit to continue working on his life so that my friend could choose Salvation in that moment. But more importantly, a very important moment when he was thinking seriously about eternity was squandered.

I came to the conclusion waiting was a mistake….one that by Gods grace I won’t make again.

Satan loves to tell us we have plenty of time, that the God moment is going to last, so we can challenge them to accept Him later. The thing is he is lying in these situations, and we forget just how quickly God moments pass.

Though I’m frustrated about missing this opportunity, I’m thankful that the Lord has reminded me just what a precious moment God moments are. And they must always be treated with the utmost seriousness.