Archive for June, 2005

The theme verse of our staff conferences this summer was 2 Corinthians 1:12 . This verse reads in the NASB , “For our proud confidence is this: the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you.”

Paul contrasts two approaches to ministry. One approach is rooted in “fleshly wisdom.” We derive such wisdom from the world around us. The other approach is rooted in “the grace of God.” Such an approach grounds itself in the undeserved love of God that we find abundantly in Jesus Christ. An approach rooted in the grace of God will produce “holiness and godly sincerity” that results in a clear conscience and a legitimate confidence in what we have done.

It seems today in ministry we have no shortage of conduct rooted in fleshly wisdom. The church measures success purely by numbers and expanding buildings. We study business practices and then implement them in the church. The consumer, i.e. the person we are trying to reach, is always first. We discover his or her “itch” or felt need and then tailor our worship to scratch that itch.

Fortunately, in rural communities such an approach doesn’t work very well. Oh yes, occasionally the church shopper will stop by and not enjoy your “goods”—the programs, the music, and the facilities. Mostly, however, people are looking for substance in small communities. They want a pastor that knows them and they know him. They want a pastor that knows how to be a shepherd. Small community life, by its nature, can detect whether your conduct is rooted in the grace of God or rooted in fleshly wisdom.

I ran across the following account in a monthly report. In it, a missionary wife is writing about her Village Missionary husband. As you read this account, see if you can tell whether it is conduct rooted in the grace of God or rooted in fleshly wisdom.

Of what does the life of a pastor consist? It consists partly of my husband being concerned with the needs of a particular couple in the church. The husband is 83 and has lung cancer, and the wife is 80 and has MS and Alzheimer’s. They’ve been married 33 years, with nine children between the two of them. The husband is in a hospital 2 ½ hours away, and the wife is home alone. st1:personname> Don has been to the hospital four times—maybe five, I’ve lost count—in the last three weeks. I contemplated today all that has taken place this month. He has visited the wife, who is 15 minutes away from our house, two times a day. Between the pastor, our family, and the church family, cards have been sent, phone calls made, visits, food brought in, rides given, bills paid, bathing helped with, household chores done, haircuts given, groceries and supplies bought….Only by the grace of God! My husband has been trying to inform the couple’s grown children about the seriousness of the situation—they have been appreciative but not involved with their parents. What is the value of a pastor? I am grateful that God has put a shepherd’s heart in my husband. He is very gentle, patient, and “hands-on” with people (much more so than I am—I guess we balance each other out). When I think about the other people who have needs that he has been there for, and his other daily/church/family responsibilities, I am appreciative and thankful to God that he is able to do these things. I believe we have many “Priceless Pastors” amongst our Village Missions family!

Thank you so much for your prayer and financial support of such missionary pastors, who derive their conduct from the grace of God!

Recently, I attended the Christian Management Association meeting in Texas. While there, I participated in an all-day training session for directors and C.E.O’s. We began the meeting by introducing ourselves and telling a little about our organization. I introduced myself, a few more directors introduced themselves, and then a young man named Mark, introduced himself, and told about the youth outreach organization he heads, Youth Dynamics.Mark, however, went further than the bare-bones introduction. He said, “I would be remiss if I did not share that I am here because of Village Missions. Years ago, my dad was selling life insurance door-to-door. He stopped at the door of a Village Missionary and asked him for ten minutes of his time. The Village Missionary agreed if my dad would give him ten minutes of his time. My dad had never heard the Gospel and that day trusted Christ as Savior. The next day the Village Missionary, Harold McGinnis, stopped by the house to begin discipling my dad and my mom trusted Christ! My entire family came to Christ and lived for Him through the ministry of a Village Missionary.”

That’s lifestyle evangelism! Lifestyle evangelism is a sharing of the Gospel message that flows naturally out of the warp and woof of relationships and even “chance” encounters. It begins with recognizing that “eternal life insurance” among other things, is the best “insurance” you can have. Led by the Holy Spirit, we look for ways to point our friends and acquaintances to Jesus Christ. We make sure that they can see Him in our life and we make sure (as much as lies within us) that they can see Him through a verbal witness.

No better place exists to be a “lifestyle evangelist” than in a rural community. The opportunities for meaningful interactions with people are actually more plentiful in a rural community than in a suburban or urban setting. You share membership in the same clubs and volunteer organizations, you know where each other lives, your children attend the same school, you attend the same school activities, you shop at the same stores, and you eat at the same restaurant—that is if your community has one.

The pastor especially has the opportunity for interaction. If he is a Village Missionary, he visits people regularly, especially when they are in the hospital or when they encounter difficult situations. He intentionally involves himself in community activities, seeking to build bridges with the lost. People in the community who never attend church still look to him as their pastor. People expect him to talk about Jesus Christ!

God has mightily used Village Missions to send couples like Harold and Joan McGinnis and other couples to practice “lifestyle evangelism” in places that would be otherwise forgotten. Think of the family that was reached, the ministry that was started, and the teens that have been reached because a Village Missionary shared Christ with a life-insurance salesman! It was part of Harold’s “lifestyle” to share. We are so thankful that it is part of your “lifestyle” to pray and to give so that other Village Missionaries can be “life-style evangelists” in rural communities.

I sometimes joke with people that I grew up in a small town on Long Island . Our town was small by Long Island standards with about 50,000 people. Not quite what most people would consider a small town!

My love for small towns began with visits to my grandparents’ small town of Arlington , Vermont . Norman Rockwell had an art studio in West Arlington and my grandparents knew many of the people found in his paintings. As a young boy, I witnessed firsthand the quality of small town life often portrayed by Rockwell.

Since that time, I have lived in many small towns, both before I became a missionary and after. I have experienced a broad spectrum of small communities, from Linneus , Maine to Fernwood , Idaho before becoming a missionary and from Finchford , Iowa to Red Feather Lakes , Colorado , after becoming a missionary. Carole and I thoroughly enjoyed living in places with a population less than 500.

There is nothing quite like entering a local restaurant and knowing most of the people there. I enjoyed serving on the local fire department and feeling that my contribution made a difference in the community. We knew the teachers, the parents, and the children at the local elementary school. When someone in the community experienced a problem, the entire community pitched in to help. I am glad that my current town of Dallas , although very large by my standard (it has a Wal-Mart), still has a small town feel to it.

I appreciate most the centrality of the local church in a small town. In Finchford, the church alone provided community life, especially after the local mercantile store closed. The church, I believe, has a much greater impact in a small town if she takes seriously her witness for Christ. All may not attend but most will in some way look to the church, especially when they are in need. I observed the atmosphere of Red Feather change as the church grew in its outreach. When our church burned down, the entire town reached out to us.

It is critical, therefore, that Village Missions advance in its God-given ministry of bringing the gospel to primarily small places. Many small towns in North America lack a church that announces the good news of Jesus Christ. Every small town I have lived in had a church. God used those churches in my life before becoming a Village Missionary to cause significant spiritual growth. Please pray with us that God will call many into service as Village Missionaries. Please pray also that God will call financial partners so that we have the resources to place missionaries. Many small towns across North America are waiting.