Tuesday, March 27, 2012

EXILES IN A FOREIGN COUNTRY

EXILES IN A FOREIGN COUNTRY:'Brie'f Devotion
I won't surprise anyone by saying that I believe followers of Christ are like exiles in most nations now. We ought to be different, yes, but I mean that we truly are children with another home that's not in this world. That makes it all the more urgent and clear that we have been left here, after salvation, to reach the city where we are planted. For me that has BEEN Myrtle Beach. In just a few short months it will be Brie-Comte-Robert. It's very close to Paris so you can just remember Paris if that's easier. I will after all be ministering to young adults there too. Life to life.

My prayer is that you don't just get a heart for the lost, the widow, the orphan and the poor in France from my journey but that you find renewed passion and strength to reach the lost, the widow, the orphan and the poor in your city!

Financial 'Brie'f: 96%!!!!!
God added a dozen new familes, a new church and moved a handful of YOU to increase your current giving! Now we have more than 200 prayer partners and 167 families giving monthly to this ministry! If you are a new partner go ahead and set up your account now please. Call Rilla Springstead at 1-800-825-5896 at ext. 104 to set up a new account or to increase your pledge! And thank you ALL for giving!!!

A BIG "Thank You" to Market Life Ministries for Friday Night. The rest of my life changed because of your exhortation that the Gospel+nothing is everything! And MERCI to my friends Dr.David Powers, his family, and the family-in-Christ at The Pilgrimage in Surfside Beach, South Carolina. David has been encouraging the church to pray about using their passports for Christ recently. So this past Sunday they welcomed me and gave me the whole service to preach, share about France and to lead in worship. That is always a stretching experience!  Read on to hear David's response after the service and what really was an encouragement to me:

Rockin’ The Pilgrimage with Ricardo Walker

We had missionary Ricardo Walker come in today to speak to our congregation. Awesome time and Ricardo rocked it!
It was weird in a good way. We’ve tried to do everything so non-traditional that when Ricardo came in with a keyboard and music, a traditional service seemed…well, non-traditional for us. It was also a great break for me, as it presented an opportunity for me to be preached to.

Ricardo is almost completely funded for his departure to France, so he’ll probably be leaving soon. If you get the chance to hear him speak or sing anywhere near you, I’d highly recommend it. One great aspect of his teaching that I pulled from both the sermon and the Q & A afterward is that when he spoke of France it already seemed like home to him. I like that. It’s going to make a tremendous difference with his ministry, that he’s at home with the people he’s reaching and not just a visitor for a few years.
Another great thing I noticed about Ricardo is that he’s highly relational, a real people person. He reminds me of Francis Chan that way. In a country like France where the vast majority of the people are unchurched, his relational ministry may be the key that reaches them. He’s also awesome with kids. Mine took to him right away.
Like I said, Ricardo is almost fully funded. Maybe God’s calling you to reach out to Europe through him. Wouldn’t it be cool if you were the person that helped him reach that magic number of ’100% funded’?

My 5yo drew this pic of Ricardo playing the piano during the service. Ricardo- He even drew you with a halo!

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