Global Talk

In mid March another village in Papua New Guinea heard about the hope that they can have in Jesus Christ. After they heard about the death, burial and resurrection, two women stayed around talking about their understanding of the message. One explained that the teaching was clear and that she now understood that her sin had her in trouble with God. God saw the trouble she was in, so He sent Jesus to take care of the problem for her. Now her sin was taken care of by the blood of Jesus, and God has placed her inside of "His fence."

The other woman was so excited that she nearly interrupted the first lady. She said that she used to come to "church" and thought she understood , but she really didn't. Now her understanding of God's Word is clear, and she sees that Jesus came to earth and lived a perfect life to pay for her sin!

Then a man named Steven (a pastor of one of the local churches) explained to the missionary that he had never realized that Christ died for him. He explained that it was his sin and it should have been his death, but Jesus came and said, "Move over, I'm paying for your sin. He took my place."

This is a reminder to me that people can do the right things and look like they are Christians but still not be saved because they don't realize their unholy state before a holy God and their need for a Savior. I hope that this above story both encourages and challenges you to share your faith with others no matter how good or bad they seem. Could there be some in our own church body who feel that their good deeds will earn them favor with God? You never know.

OK, this may be the last blog update from us from Venezuela this year. We are starting the packing process, and we have no idea of future internet opportunities. Thanks for the e-notes of encouragement we've received, and the package from the Myricks!

It's hard to leave, but we're very glad we came. We thank God for the relationships He's blessed us with here in Venezuela.

I don't have the words to describe the feelings we have for these young people who seem to have so many questions, and who are so eager for someone to ask them about themselves and their relationships and give input into their lives.

Not sure, but I think we're looking at close to 40 students attending the National Conference from Merida. Thanks so much to all who helped these students make the trip. We learned of two or three today who can come to the National Conference because of the scholarship money you helped to provide. San Cristobal students, too, have received more than $500 in assistance. Thanks!!

Tomorrow we head to the National Conference of Vida Estudiantil (Campus Crusade) until Easter, then to a 3-day retreat, then we head home on the 27th of March. God has blessed us here, and we leave with many new friends, a few new brothers and sisters in Christ, and more memories than our old minds can retain! We thank God for the warmth and acceptance of the young people here -- it's hard to feel old when they treat you like their best friends!

We appreciate your prayers, and we hope God will use us to help these young people grow in Christ during the coming Conference.

In Him,

Tom and Betty B.

Hi, Church Blog Readers!

This was a busy weekend for Betty and me. Friday afternoon was English Club, where we were able to invite and spend time with several new people. English Club is a great environment for building relationships because the best way for the kids to learn is to talk one-on-one with individual English-speakers. So even though English is being taught, that's not the primary purpose for having the club.

In addition to English Club, we did our best to lead the couples' study of "Love and Respect" on Friday night. Our friend Simon interpreted for us, and we think it went pretty well. Trying to have a discussion among 40 people when it all has to go through an interpreter can be a little tough, however. The people were responsive, joined right into the ice-breaker (I think with Latinos there IS no ice to break!), and seemed to appreciate what we had to say. Afterwards a young unmarried couple came to us and and asked if they could meet with us, and a lady wrote Betty a note asking her to make e-mail contact. We also met with another couple Sunday after church, and have a general appointment with yet another young unmarried couple. I think there's pretty strong interest in this topic here in Merida.

I talked for 50 minutes at church yesterday, counting time for interpretation, about a fire that prayer stopped. I talked about the spiritual unity of the believers who prayed to save the house, and tied it in with John 17 where Jesus prays for those who believe to be unified so the whole world will know God sent Him and God loves us. But my talk was only a small part of the service, which started at 10 AM and ended at about 12:45. Most of it was prayer, in groups and from various people up front, some of it was testimony from people in the body, and some of it was singing (singing at CENFOL has improved 1000% over the last 2 or 3 years).

Finally, as I write this, Betty is speaking at a women's meeting on how Christ can triumph through our tragedy.

We're feeling a sense of fulfillment as we try to get out of the way and let God lead us. We thought our commitments here were thinning out, but now I don't think we'll have a free day for awhile. That's okay, 'cause the exciting stuff seems to happen when we're spending time with the people here! It's kind of exciting to see what God has for us each day!

I've tried to summarize...sorry this is so long.....there's just so much going on!

Tom for the Bergies

Something Eric Fuller asked in his recent blog prompted me to review a favorite book, "Don’t Waste Your Life", by John Piper. Here is one excerpt that slapped me in the face, and may slap you, as well! What do you think?

“Oh, how many lives are wasted by people who believe that the Christian life means simply avoiding badness and providing for the family. So there is no adultery, no stealing, no killing, no embezzlement, no fraud – just lots of hard work during the day, and lots of TV and PG-13 videos in the evening (during quality family time), and lots of fun stuff on the weekend – woven around church (mostly). This is life for millions of people. Wasted life. We were created for more, far more.” (p. 119)

Whet your appetite? Make you mad? Increase the amount of guilt you’re already carrying? Why don’t you try reading the whole book and see what his main point is -- I recommend it.

Last week we were sitting in one of our church planting courses here in Missouri. Our teacher said, “I don’t know who coined the term “world evangelism”, it’s not in the Bible.” Now. . . I had never heard this statement before and thought it a little strange that it was spoken here at the Missionary Training Center. But I was quickly challenged with his emphasis.

We probably have all heard about people coming home from a mission trip talking about all the people that were saved. I recently heard about someone who came home from an Asian country that said that 18,000 people got saved when he was holding evangelistic meetings over a 10 day period.

There used to be a time in my life that I would just accept this and praise the Lord for the new believers. But now I wonder if these people clearly understood the gospel in the first place, and then if they did, who is helping these 18,000 new believers become mature in the Lord.

Now imagine, a woman gives birth to a baby. She and her husband rejoice over the birth of the little one and then turn to the newborn and say, “We’re so glad that you have life, but we have to go make some more babies so be warm and well fed and we’ll see you again in heaven.”

This is a ridiculous scenario, but why is it so commonplace when in the context of people becoming believers? Having little to no follow-up after one gets saved is almost considered the norm in Christian missions these days. Why is this so? Could it be that we struggle with this emphasis in our own lives as the Church? We can tend to focus on “getting people saved” and put very little attention on helping immature believers become mature in their new found relationship with God.

Frankly, I think people are too busy to invest time into a new believer. Maybe we think, “It’s all good, he’s going to heaven now.” Or maybe we fear that we are inadequate in our understanding of the Bible and incompetent to teach others. I believe Satan loves Christians to stay in this place.

Many of the reasons I am the man that I am today is because a few key older men took time out of their busy schedules to invest into me after I got saved. They challenged, encouraged, and told me when I was going astray. They did this for months on end. They understood their role as a believer in Christ, and they walked along side me and helped to guide me.

Paul was all about bringing believers up to maturity. In Colossians 1:28 he says, “Him (Jesus) we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.”

Paul also wrote, “Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God.” Colossians 4:12

I want to challenge you, as I’ve been challenged to spend time praying and asking God to reveal to you where you are at in your maturity in Christ. If He reveals a lack of maturity then ask a mature believer in the church to disciple you. If He reveals that you are a mature believer (not perfect) then seek out someone less mature to meet with on a regular basis and ask God to grow both of you through that relationship. He may reveal that you should be doing both. (Getting discipled and discipling others) The goal is that we grow in our maturity in Christ. We should never stagnate as Christians but should continue pressing on and growing in maturity.

So instead of just doing world evangelism, how about we get serious about what God is passionate about: WORLD DISCIPLESHIP!!!

I was lying in bed this morning, running over several conversations we’ve had with young Venezuelans since we’ve been here. A common theme is that men are not faithful to their families. A 23-year-old young woman from Sweden is here trying to connect with her Venezuelan father. But she has finally decided that all the pain she suffered in Sweden, feeling unwanted by her father, was because he is nothing more than a boy in a man’s body. She has traveled all over the world trying to find meaning and purpose, trying to fill the void left by her father who impregnated her mother and then left.

It seems to be part of the “macho” image here in South America. And in the US, too, we know we have this problem. Families are ripped apart because of infidelity, whether on the part of the wife and mother or the husband and father. People, our children do not need this! Rather than spending all that energy being deceitful, trying to make up for the pain in our children’s lives, trying to juggle future weddings and babies and visiting and holidays, etc, with the “former” family and the “latter” family, why not rather put in the energy to make a good marriage great, or a mediocre marriage good, or a bad marriage better?! And for those of you who have already been down this infidelity road, whether as the perpetrator or the victim, maybe you have some wisdom from your experience that you can offer.

I’m not saying this from the standpoint of one with a pure mind who has it all together. Let’s ALL commit to putting time and energy into our relationships with our spouses, casting out “what if” thoughts that might begin to take us down the wrong roads. Let’s be vulnerable and open with our spouses, and magnify what it is that drew us together in the first place, the characteristics we most love and respect in each other. This is what our God would have us do, according to Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.” I use this verse to change my focus sometimes, and it is very helpful.

Don’t just let your mind, or your eyes, wander. Paul gives good advice in Second Corinthians 10:5: “…we take captive every thought to make it obedient.” I’m a long way from that, but it has helped me realize how undisciplined my thought-life can be.

I owe it to my four daughters; I owe it to my 8 grandkids; I owe it to my WIFE; I owe it to my God, to remain faithful not just in deed, but in thought, as well. And each one reading this have a similar list of reasons for making your marriage a wonderful adventure in faithfulness.

Written Feb 13, 2008

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21

We came to Venezuela wanting to be used of God in any capacity that He saw fit. We came with a number of Spanish-language marriage books entitled Love and Respect. Couples in our small group had experienced growth in their marriages because of it, and we thought the concepts were especially important in Venezuelan society. But Vida Estudiantil (Campus Crusade) is comprised mostly of single college students – so we haven’t been sure exactly if or how this marriage-book idea would be fleshed out.

As it turned out, Keith and Sheri, the National Directors of Vida Estudantil in Venezuela, were delighted that we had brought the books because they had a number of couples who “really needed them!” They felt there was enough need for it that they asked us to teach “Love and Respect” during one of the breakout sessions at the National Conference in March.

As many of you Gracers know, our church has had a 4-year connection with the church called CENFOL here in Merida. GCF partnered with them two or three years ago to help fund their move to a bigger room in a different building. And this year their excellent worship music was coming, in part, from a keyboard they purchased with money GCF donated last year. The acting pastor, Sonia, told us what a blessing it has been for them, and expressed the gratitude of her church.

Sonia, who had been the pastor’s assistant, has been the sole pastor of the church since pastor Ramon left a year ago to further his education. The man who was expected to take Ramon’s place decided not to move to Merida.

Betty approached Sonia yesterday (Feb 13) at the weekly Vida Estudiantil meeting to ask about using the church building (it’s actually a rented one-room space ) to teach a class on Love and Respect. Sonia speaks no English, but her face shone with amazement and surprise! She had just been approached by a couple in the church who asked her to start a class utilizing the very same book! They wanted to meet and teach the concepts to other married couples---old, young, and even serious couples anticipating marriage. It was on the calendar starting in February. Two problems: 1) they only had one book they were trying to all share, and 2) Sonia is single, and didn’t feel qualified to lead the study, and nobody else wanted to start it off. How exciting to see the God’s plans and timing unfold in front of us! We told her we had about 10 books we could give her---now we know why God had prompted us to bring a suitcase full of books! And we quickly accepted her request to start off the class for her, and then other couples within the church will lead subsequent classes.

She kept giving God the glory for His provision! Yes--the Lord does indeed do immeasurably more than we can possibly imagine! We are so glad God brought us here!

Well, here we are in Merida!

Christian Vivas made sure we were safely on the 11 PM bus for the 8-hour ride to Merida. And then we were on our own in a foreign country. For about 5 minutes.

Before we were out of the station, the young college student in the seat in front of us looked back and said something to me, which I didn’t catch. (I think she was asking if it would be okay if she reclined her seat.) When she saw my confusion with the language, she smiled and quickly turned to her seat-mate and said, in Spanish, “Gringos! You can practice your English!” Immediately they were turned and leaning over the backs of their seats, talking with us in a mixture of English and Spanish. Soon their friends were joining in, and within a few more minutes we were all taking pictures of each other. Such is the warmth and enthusiasm we seem to encounter every time we visit this friendly country. We planned to have them visit us in Merida, but they got off the bus way too early.

We met the Vida Estudiantil (Campus Crusade) students and staff at the weekly meeting on the campus of the University of the Andes. Again, we were warmly welcomed by many friends from the past. It was touching to see some who were “beginners” just a year or two ago engaged in leadership now, as 45 or 50 students played games, sang worship songs, and listened to JJ speak (for 30 minutes or so) of the importance of humility in their lives.

Our personal friends, the Montoya family, with 4 daughters, who are like our Venezuelan family, were just hit with a robbery that cost them thousands of dollars. It happened on our first day here, and it is a big blow to their small cyber-café business. It may impact whether the girls can come to the annual National Conference in March. Please be praying for all of them. (All six of the Montoyas have become Christians since Vida Estudiantil first came to Merida.)

We are taking Spanish classes 4 hours a day, and I forgot how difficult it is to think so hard! We each hope to improve in our ability to speak the language, but there is no doubt that people will continue to quickly perceive that we are “gringos” as soon as we begin talking! Oh, well, God has His ways of opening doors for us – please pray that we’ll "aprovechar" (take advantage of) the opportunities He gives us.

In Christ,

Tom and Betty B.

Christian and Julieta Vivas, who our church helps to support, send their greetings! They are so thankful for the prayers and financial support of the Grace church family and of those individuals who also are committed to them.

News Flash: Christian has been named Director of the multi-campus Maracaibo ministry! There was a vacancy, and the National Leader asked Christian to step in. So he is doubly anxious to have your prayer support. There has been a lot of illness among the leaders of Campus Crusade throughout Venezuela, so please be praying for physical and spiritual protection.

Milk and other staples are in short supply right now in Venezuela, so Julieta had to give up her new business of making and selling desserts. For now she is teaching English to 7-year-olds to try to make ends meet.

While there may be a shortage of some food basics, gasoline is cheaper than drinking water -- like $1.25 to fill an entire gas tank! Sorry, we can't bring any home with us!

I'll e-mail a picture of Christian and Julieta to Tracy so you all can get a fresh visual reminder of who they are.

Thanks for your prayers!

Tom and Betty B.

This week Sheila and I have decided to do a blog series and answer the top 5 questions that people ask us when we tell them we are going to be tribal church planters. To see our responses click here.

If you want to dialog about about our answers please feel free to write. Have a great day!

Paul

As we were packing for our faith adventure in Venezuela, our friends Evan and Michelle stopped by and really motivated us to “pack light”. They said again and again how they traveled for weeks in Europe with just a small backpack of belongings. And they had to say it repeatedly because we kept questioning them, because we wanted to be sure we had all possible contingencies covered. We were definitely doubters!

But they eventually convinced us that they never missed anything they left behind, and traveling was much easier with a light load. We were not an easy sell, but we truly packed light!

So I awoke the next morning thinking of how ‘un-light’ my current life is. Literally, my house and garage are full of things never used. I wanted to – and still want to – toss, toss, toss. I’ve become enslaved to my possessions, and I want to break free!

Similarly, we pack our lives full of activities that enslave us, that keep us from spontaneity and personal interaction. Think of the freedom we’d have, if our schedules were not full to the hilt, to respond to impulses and perhaps even to the Holy Spirit. “Let’s have somebody over!” “Let’s see if we can find someone who wants to go to the beach with us!” “I wonder if that person has enough to eat?” “She seems lonely – let’s invite her to lunch.”

Some of the best models of simple living I’ve run into are the young couples in the Grace Group that meets at our house – only half of them have televisions, they seem to be purposely striving for SMALL rather than LARGE living quarters, and they make time to get together outside of “official” gatherings like church and Bible studies. Of course, we’re talking pre-children here…but still, there’s a principle to be learned from these young wise ones:

Pack Light!

Jesus said "no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will fail to receive many times as much in this age and, in the age to come, eternal life."

I was sad to see that He didn't mention grandchildren! 'Cause that's where we're "counting the cost" of going to Venezuela! Tayvan will probably be walking by the time we get back. And, truthfully, grandkids are probably the reason we didn't sign up for a longer stint.

Having said that, though, I want to be clear that I don't believe Jesus is talking about Betty and me in the quote above. When he speaks of leaving one's family for the sake of the kingdom of God, I don't think he means going away for a couple of months. I believe He's talking to the many believers who have been forced, in many cases, to leave their families because of their belief in Christ, or who, like the Apostles He's talking to in this passage, have physically left their families to devote their lives to following Him.

In our short previous trips to Venezuela, however, we have indeed found that the principle of receiving "many times as much" is alive and well. For a small investment of our time, we've been blessed with a growing "family" who we are excited to visit whenever we can. There are some who call us "Mom" and "Dad", and many others with whom we have a spiritual connection that transcends our differing cultures and languages.

We thank God for the devotion and dedication of the workers in Venezuela who are presenting the gospel and nurturing the new believers. And we thank Him for letting us be a small part of relating the gospel to people who are spiritually ripe and ready to receive it.

Tom and Betty Berglund

Written: Sun, 13 Jan 2008

Hello Everyone! It’s a warm blue day here In Mwanza TZ. It’s taken forever, but after months of work and preparation, I have finally arrived. I'm so excited to be here. I have no idea what God has instore for me here, but i can only ask that He would work through me, as well as change me and mold me. I’ll try to give a brief recap of all that has happened in the past month, up to now.

On Dec 26, I left my Job as a clerk at the Bi-Mart pharmacy to start packing for my trip. The plan was to leave Wed, Jan 2 for New York, where I’d meet with the staff at AIM (Africa Inland Mission) and go through a pre-orientation before flying straight to TZ. Well, things become a bit more complicated Monday before I left when I got a call from AIM. They told me that Kenya was going through an intense time of political unrest and sporadic violence. Because many of the short-termers were flying either to, or through Nairobi Kenya, this made things a bit dicier. I flew out Wednesday to New York for the Orientation and met with the other short-termers who were also going out to different parts of Africa, as well as the amazing staff of AIM. After Going through the orientation, we decided to fly myself home on Friday Jan 4. I would then fly from Eugene on the 6th, and bypass Nairobi, and fly straight into TZ (though a bit more expensive). I came home Friday and with the help of my family finished the rest of my packing on Saturday, then flew out the next morning Sunday. I should also note, that AIM either redirected all the Short-Termers who were going through Kenya, or postponed their mission to make sure that they would not be put in any possible danger.

I flew an hour from Eugene to Seattle with no trouble. Then the red eye from Seattle to London which was a very long flight (alcohol + stupid parents + crying babies makes for a very long red eye flight). Then another red eye from London to Dar es Salaam TZ (capitol), and then a little hopper from there to Mwanza (second Largest city in TZ) on the shores of lake Victoria. I was picked up from the Airport by Bob Jeffers, and taken to their place in Mwanza.

Right now, I am staying at Bob and Esther Jeffers’ Guest house for the first 3 weeks of my trip. Here I will be taking a crash course in Swahili at a local international language training school. Considering that my only D in high school came from my Spanish class, we’re hoping that that’s not indicative of my time here… I have a wonderful local instructor who is also a missionary here with another Church. So for right now, I’m resting and learning here in Mwanza. It was a bit of an adventure the first couple days here. When I arrived, my bags, didn’t… They were able to locate them, but for about 4 days, we didn’t know when or if my bags would show up. But God is good, in the details, and faithful. We picked up my Bags yesterday!…and they’re not leaving my sight for a long time. The Jeffers’ have been wonderful in helping to orient me and begin to explain the culture to me, which is so different than anything I could ever have expected.

In a couple weeks, I’ll move down to Kahunda, about 5 hours west of here with the Anderson’s and begin my stay there for the next 6 months. I really don’t know much about what all is entailed with my stay there yet. I met with the Andy and Margaret Anderson a few days ago as they just recently arrived here. It looks like I’ll be doing some teaching in their secondary school (teaching in the primary school’s is in Swahili, then in secondary school’s it’s in English). And then, whatever other things they need me to do, I’ll do. They’re involved with much of the island ministry there, so I’ll be helping Andy and Margaret out in whatever way they needs me.

I look forward to keeping you all back home updated. For now my Laptop has internet access, and we’re working to keep that up once I actually leave for Kahunda. Feel free to write and keep me updated about all that’s going on at home, I love reading your emails!

My thanks again, for all of you who have made this God ordained trip possible. Continue to pray me, I appreciate your prayers so much. Pray that I would imbibe the Swahili training, and that I would continue to learn and adjust to the culture here. Pray that this would be a time of stretching and growing in God. Pray also that God would open my eyes to what He would have me do, and to keep me flexible.

I love you and miss you all

Your local Monk in Africa

Geoff
Manton

We love hearing what God is doing in the hearts of people around the world! Here at the New Tribes Missionary Training Center we have a daily opportunity to receive updates from missionaries who are working with unreached peoples. Following is an excerpt from a missionary describing the fellowship of a group of brand new believers:

"So, what are the church meetings like? AMAZING! You know what is different about us and these people? They don't live in a dichotomy like we westerners do. They are more holistic in their thinking and in their living. Why? Because they live in communities. They cook together, work together, sleep in bamboo houses that are 2 feet apart...which means that every one knows what is going on in every house. There is no escape of accountability. There are no nice and neat little compartments to shove the parts of our lives in that we don't want our fellow church members to see. Everything is out in the open. As they meet in church it is just another important part of this new life in Christ...not THE main part. As they apply the truths that they learn, they are applying them fresh to their lives and not putting them through our western grid and sometimes the result is quite refreshing. An example...We have taught the people that God is everywhere. We have taught them that he loves it when his children to talk to Him and to praise him for the things that he has done and for the things that He is doing right now in our lives. We have now taught them that is why we meet together...to encourage one another and to praise his name for things he has done since the beginning of the world through...well, this past minute! So, as they meet to pray and praise...we often can't tell the difference between the two! They don't bow their heads and fold their hands when they are praying...they often look up and talk because he is right there...or they just start talking to all of us, telling what the Lord did that week to show his mercy or grace in their lives and then will end with AMEN! Why? Because as they are recounting for those gathered what the Lord has done and they are acknowledging that He is here among us! Almost every testimony or praise ends with..."It is like that, so I am giving you a big thank you Lord Jesus! Amen!"

Now most people will probably assume this is because their culture is different than ours. It is true that we have different cultures, but I think we could learn a lot from the way these tribal people interact with one another. I have been thinking a lot lately that we Westerners are growing further and further apart. I am not sure what started our independent, "I'm my own man/woman and I can do my own thing if it works for me." mentality, but I think it has gotten much worse and is continuing on the same trend.

With the invention of internet and e-mail, many of us don't have a need for real face-to-face interactions . We have so many virtual relationships that we have little time to invest in real live relationships that invite encouragement, challenge, and rebuke into our lives. Instead we come home from work, drive our car into the garage, and sit inside our house with our huge front and back yards with a fence all around our property. As we hide our emotions behind our computer while checking everybody's blog and Facebook page, our neighbor is so lonely and feels so purposeless that he is putting a gun to his head.

Is this what Jesus had in mind when He talks about His church? Does the life of an average American Christian exemplify how the Body of Christ should function? Do we view church on Sunday as the primary time that we function as a body or are we reaching out during the week to those who are lonely and hurting in our body? Are we going to church with a consumeristic mentality--trying to see what we can get out of it (whether we're hoping to gain time with friends or spiritual encouragment)--or are we being intentional about being a blessing to someone else? When we do get together with other believers either inside church or outside church, are we encouraging, challenging, and spurring one another on, or are we simply satisfied with talks about the weather, intellectual discussions that never change the way we live, or worse: gossip. When we shy away from the deeper conversations that penetrate our hearts and lives, we lose out on the true fellowship we could experience and we perpetuate a "Lone Ranger" mentality of the Christian life that is in direct opposition to how the Body of Christ should function.

I'm writing this as a challenge to all of us, me included, to evaluate how our virtual relationships may be impeding the deep, face-to-face relationships that I believe are in alignment with the Biblical model of the Body of Christ. Hopefully this made you think. If you have comments, please write.

From: Bryon Scharenberg
Date: Wed, 13 Jun 2007
Subject: Re: Thanks!

Hey Tom!

How are you doing? I hope you've been well. Know that I'm beating myself up for not writing you back earlier. And now, I look at the calendar and it's JUNE!!! How did I let so much time fly by?!

Things have been great here in Merida. After you guys took off, we were able to see a couple of the students that we met through our outreaches come around to our functions, and we've had one guy, Jason (do you remember him?) actually start getting involved with us, and helping out! It's pretty cool to see the fruit from time that we go out there and trust the Lord.

Aside from those things, we've had many changes happening. This last month, we said goodbye to Amber and Claudia, who both went back home to start raising support for another year of ministry. We've also been traveling a bit, renewing visa's, and adjusting ministry roles around to fill the gap made by less teammates! The best part of it all, is that there are so few of us now (3) that the students are really running with their responsibilities. They've been leading our meetings, teaching up front to their fellow students, and now that the summer project is here, they are pairing up with students from the US and getting out sharing their faith all the time! What a blessing to see how God has used the work of foreigners like us to sow into something that will last a lifetime.

Tom, I also want to say thank you, thank you, thank you for the donation that Grace Community gave to our ministry. We have been able to use it to scholarship our students to things like the Congreso and transportation getting there. The national conference was pretty incredible. We had nearly 200 in attendance. The best part was seeing how God used that opportunity as a way to grow people in their faith. We've also been able to use some of that donation for other ministry events, like fiestas, an outreach on the Economics campus, and helping cover the expense of having a place where we can see God develop community in our movement- the Vida Estudiantil
office- which you all know of.

So mostly I just wanted to touch base, and thank you again for sowing and harvesting here in Venezuela with us. Your visit here in Merida was a blessing to us, and to the many students in our movement. God bless you and all those back with you in Eugene.

'Fishing' in Venezuela,
Bryon
Luke 5:10

This letter from Deivi (in Venezuela) speaks volumes. It thanks the body for their support of the San Cristobal students that enabled them to go to the national conference, and for their support in the purchase of the data projector.

-----Message-----
From: Deivi Bracho
Sent: Apr 21, 2007 9:44 PM
Subject: Thanks!!! Conference Update!

Sorry is a long email, but I know you will enjoy it.
Can you please send it to the others? I don't have all the addresses.
Deivi

Hey Guys,

Two weeks after the Conference I finally have the chance to sit down and up date you about all the things God did during the Conference.

First of all, let me say (in name of my team) THANKS A LOT! for finding resourses to help students to go! What a heart! We all are very, very fortunate to have you guys helping. Honestly, we thanks God for your heart for this ministry and we appreciate all of your efforts toward our students and us; You are a part of it as much as we are.

I have several things to say about our trip, maybe the best way to express it is through a verse that we were praying for weeks before the conference: Eph.3:20. "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us"... We were praying for 30 students to go (a big step of faith knowing that this is our first year), we were praying for an specific bus from campus to take us to the place, for God to reveal Himself to the student hearts, for a community of believers experiencing grace and thruth... and some other things. Well, God did more than what we asked:

::There were 40 students and some other that couldn't go. (44 total, including the team)
::We went in a new bus from campus.
::At leat 22 of them were new believers (days, weeks, less than six months).
::There were six students non believers from SC whom received Christ during the conference, some of them lead others to Christ during the evangelism time.
::On the way back we had a special time for testimonies and 90 % out of the 40 cried as they shared the ways God spoke directly to their hearts.
::They all got connected to the whole Vida Estudiantil body in Venezuela.
::We also had a challenge to serve God at the end of the Conference and some of them stand up, went to front for our Director to pray for them as they decided to serve after they graduate.

Particulary, the Lord was speaking to me every time I saw one of them interacting at the conference. He reminded me once about His great plans for the movement here. How valuable my job is! I wish you guys 'd be there, to be able to witness that, to cry with us and bow down giving Him thanks for that!... This is my testimony: I saw God in our student hearts!!! and I'd do all what I did twice again, just to witness that!

The results: there is a momentum in our movement, our meeting are packed, they are bringing their friends for us to share about God. It seem like the are best friends and usually hang out even when we aren't around.

Thanks again for your help!

Some quotes from the students...

"God is real, he was very clear when told me that today" Edda (non believer before the conference), as she was huging Yadira.

"I wanna serve God right after I graduate" (Angily) (2 months in Christ)

"God will never leave me, You guys never leave us please" Mileidy (Three weeks in Christ) crying and huging Yanina.

"God changed my life through this conference" Daniel (received Christ at the conference)

" My life is different since I met Jesus, I gonna serve with Vida Estudiantil" Luis (came to Christ in february)

"I signed up for the three missions they advertised this year" Issa (1 month old in Christ)

"I have never experienced something as wonderful as this" Gerardo (1 month old in Christ)

"Last year we were alone, now look at what the lord did" Julian (crying as he shared on the way back)

For Him,

Deivi

As Christians, we talk a lot about our identity. We’re pretty sure about who we are in our cloistered Christian community, but when we have to relate on a spiritual level with those who aren’t from our own Christian culture, we’re not sure who we are. If we say we’re “Christian,” then we step right into the stereotype prepared for us by the politically correct, by the media, and by our own hypocrisy. If we say we’re followers of Christ, we perceive that others will be immediately turned off by our one-way-and-only-one-way beliefs. “Fundamentalists” carry a lot of baggage related to legalism. “Evangelicals” have gotten a black eye lately by a rash of prominent leaders teaching one thing and living another.

So what is a Christian supposed to do if he wants to talk to others about Christ??? Why, go to Venezuela, of course! I was still in the air from Miami to Caracas when the lady next to me asked me why I was coming to Venezuela. “A group of us are coming” I said, somewhat evasively. What kind of group, she wanted to know. A group from a church in the US, I said. What kind of church? “Christian.” (There it was. A conversation killer for sure. Wrong.) “What kind of Christian? – there are lots of groups that say they are Christian” – and she listed off more than 5 Christian groups. “Uh, we just believe in the Bible and try to apply it to our lives,” I said in broken Spanish. “Oh, she said. I do that too, and I’m Catholic.” I was not ready to talk this way. So I asked her about how to deal with the horde of taxi drivers at the Caracas airport. I guess I failed the first test. But God still loves me!

On the University of the Andes campus at San Cristobal, it was hard to get started, but the students were as open about talking about spiritual things as the lady on the plane had been. They had opinions, they listened, and they prayed to receive Christ. More than 30 of them in a 4-hour period. They weren’t interested in labels. They were interested in hearing that God loves them, that their sin separates them from God, and that Jesus provides the only way to deal with their sin so that they can be acceptable to God. They were excited to hear that God desires a relationship with them. They believed, and they brought their friends to a meeting so they, too, could hear and believe.

To us Gringos, this was all completely amazing. This openness is something we’ve never experienced before. The total lack of cynicism was very hard to believe. The number of people who responded was way beyond our expectations.

But to the Venezuelans who work here all the time, it’s expected. “We’re used to being overwhelmed,” said Deivi Bracho, director for Campus Crusade in San Cristobal. “We just wish we had more people so we could disciple all the new believers. As it is, only the extremely persistent students are getting the attention they deserve.”

Deivi and his wife Yanina are praying that they’ll be able to stay in San Cristobal. If support doesn’t come in for them and at least two other partners, they’ll have to pull out of San Cristobal and move to a more established campus.

“We are willing to go wherever God directs,” said Deivi. “But,” replied Yanina, “if we have to leave San Cristobal, we’ll be devastated.”

The community of believers at Grace Community Fellowship are praying that Deivi and Yanina will be able to stay in San Cristobal.

Tom Berglund

From: "Paul Gunderson"
Date: Mon, 26 Feb 2007

Although I've been planning on being a missionary since I was 8 years old, it seems like the closer I get to going overseas, the more scared I am feeling. Missions has always been future tense, something I'd do when I "grew up". Feelings of inadequacy and fear can overwhelm me when I consider it in the "present" tense.
Paul and I are receiving great tools for missions here at the training center in Missouri, but just last week it hit me, "What are we doing?" I broke down and started crying. I can't be sure if it was the "tech tips" class that we are in and the overwhelming feeling of not knowing what kind of batteries, refrigerators, solar panels, and tools to purchase that did it, or the fact that we don't know which country we'll go to and who our coworkers will be yet, or the fact that we are learning all about the hot and humid and difficult living conditions, or the fear of tribal people themselves and the manipulations we will face. But I can assure you that something related to the sacrifices and suffering that will be involved began to sink in that day, and I didn't like it. Who likes feeling uncomfortable and out of control?
It provided a great opportunity for Paul and me to talk (and in my case, cry) through WHY we are doing this. . . .

1. Have we been exposed to the incredible need for unreached people to be told the truth of the gospel? Yes!
(A quote I recently heard was, "We talk of the second coming of Christ, yet half of the world has never heard of the first." Oswald J. Smith)

2. Have we seen that they are harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd? Yes!

3. Have we seen that it is God's heart that these people are told about Him? Yes!

4. Is God worthy of my obedience? Sacrifice? Suffering? Praise? Yes!

5. Does He love it when we depend on Him? Yes!
(And yet this is what makes me so uncomfortable)

Thanks for allowing me to share my honest fears and thoughts with you. We continue to appreciate your prayers and encouragement.

Love, Sheila and Paul

Dear friends and family,
I was crying when I read this latest email. New Tribes Missionaries are teaching this very week the Tobo people of Papua New Guinea . That means they've been there long enough to learn the language proficiently in order to teach and translate. Hearing stories like this is so motivating! It's the whole reason Paul and I are in the training. It's to prepare for days ahead like this! Please pray with us for the Tobo people this month. It's obvious they are very receptive! Perhaps you too will be moved by the photo of the missionary teaching the people using live drama! (the photo is a reenactment of Abraham getting ready to sacrifice Isaac) If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to ask.

Hope it blesses your heart as well,

Sheila (www.paulandsheila.com)
_________________________________________________
The Rumble at Babel

Monday morning in the clearing where we teach: Jason was teaching about the confusion at Babel, and to illustrate, he began speaking in English, calling us to get to work. I came up asking him where the hammer was in Spanish, and 2 other Tobo men who were in on the skit came up each speaking bits of another language each knew. By the time Janeene and Kellie entered the scene from 2 different corners, each speaking a language from Africa, we noticed that many people on the outer areas of the audience were running away to get their bushknives (machetes)! They apparently had missed the fact that we were just performing a skit and thought that a small village war was breaking out! All those who knew what we were doing were laughing at the others. Needless to say, after everyone settled down, we all had a good laugh about it and a point was made: Babel must have truly broken up and scattered everyone in the world into the various language and people groups as we see today!

Airplane? What airplane?

Tuesday morning: Just as I was beginning our time by asking review questions from Monday’s lesson, we all heard the familiar drone of an approaching plane. The small MAF airplane was bringing a visiting dignitary running for parliament in PNG’s 2007 elections, who is a doctor from Port Moresby and a relative of our local doctor from a neighboring tribal group. To our shoc, no one wanted to move a muscle to run down to the airstrip. They said, “We’ll hear this talk first, then go!” What a powerful testimony to how much this group desires to hear God’s Word taught in their language! The doctor, who is a regular at the teaching, did go down after a little while, then brought his relative back up with himself and they sat through the rest of the lesson with us!
alking between the ‘animal pieces’?!?

Wednesday morning: Jason and I team-taught the lesson on God confirming His promise or covenant with Abram and giving him the new name Abraham. Jason, along with another friend of ours illustrated the custom of walking through a line of split animal carcasses (stones in our case) in order to making a binding contract or covenant. He then shared how God alone went between the pieces, not Abram, as this was God’s promise to make and His to carry out, what work could the elderly and childless Abram do to help himself have more descendants than the stars in the sky? Or to inherit all the land of Canaan? (This story comes from Genesis 15, for those who may be curious about God’s going between the animal pieces) Again, we had a very large turnout, most of whom came to the teaching first and then down the hill to the political meeting afterward. In the past, such a meeting would have taken precedence over other plans, but again we are seeing the hunger to hear the clear teaching of God’s Word. What an encouragement!

Morosin’s Tears

Thursday morning: We had just finished teaching the lesson on how God destroyed the wicked people of Sodom and Gomorrah, but rescued Lot and his family. After the review questions, we invited people in the group to share their questions and thoughts with us. Among those with something to say was one of our neighbors, a middle-aged man named Morosin. Morosin has always been one of those people we had found, let’s say, difficult. In fact, we weren’t even sure at the outset how often or even if he would come to the teaching. Well, we were unprepared for what happened today. In front of all the men and women present, he stood up to talk and began crying as he shared how he was seeing how sinful he was! With tears coming to our eyes as well, we sat there marveling at the convicting power of the Holy Spirit through the truth of the Word of God. Please be praying for Morosin, that he would continue to come and learn the truth that will set him free from the bondage of his sin.

A Preview of the Ultimate Sacrifice

Friday morning: We had a good crowd assembled as Jason and I started stacking stones for a makeshift altar, while 2 other friends got a bush and a sheep ready. What was all this about? Midway through the lesson, Jason and his son Micah portrayed the story of Abraham about to kill his son Isaac, as Chad narrated from the Bible and the angel of the Lord stopped Abraham. Then the sheep was there behind him in the bush to take Isaac’s place as the sacrifice. You could have heard a leaf drop as Jason untied Micah, took him off of the altar, and pretended to kill and sacrifice the sheep. We could hear and see people sniffling and crying as Jason and Micah walked off the scene together- the drama had a definite impact. Afterward, various people with tears in their eyes were saying to us how God’s Word has been breaking their livers, their hearts, their insides. We are truly seeing God’s hand here. Please pray for these dear people for whom Christ died, that very soon they will be able to look at this picture and make the connection between this story and what Christ has done for them. The teaching is building up momentum to bring people to the point of seeing their need for a Savior and then they will be able to accept the provision of Christ to save them from the penalty of their sin. Please continue to pray!

God is at work here! Please keep praying with us!!!

Chad, Janeene & Elijah

Deivi Bracho was one of the young men from Venezuela who visited Grace Community Fellowship in August. He is now beginning a new Campus Crusade ministry in the city of San Cristobal, Venezuela. He writes with considerable enthusiasm that "things are going great here, God has done so many things in and through us that I'm very happy. In the last two weeks 33 students came to Christ as we were sharing the gospel with the 4 laws... they are very open!" Please pray for Deivi and his team in Venezuela.

Hello all!

I know it has only been a week since my last update, but we're in Bangalore for the weekend, so I'm taking advantage of this connection and sending a picture to everyone! [not included here]

This last week was fantastic. Jay and Naresh brought a few hundred plants from a nursury in Bangalore because we are re-landscaping part of the grounds at Green Valley. This also involves painting the outside of the swimming pool and one side of one of the buildings. I got in on some of the painting action, so that was a blast. I love getting dirty! The picture attached is me after painting, Stephanie in the middle and Amber on the left, just sitting on the floor in our room.

During the next two weeks us three ladies will be teaching a class on the parables of Jesus... we will do some formal lecture-style teaching and then have a few sessions to do skits of some parables with all the students, so we're really looking forward to that. Pray for clear, focused minds as we study and teach.

Two weeks from today we have two more Canadians joining the team here at Green Valley... my boyfriend, Mark, and Carolyn who was with me here during the second term of school last year. You can pray that their journey would be safe.

This last Wednesday was our second afternoon of community outreach. Stephanie and Amber went with students again and were helping to dig in a foundation for a new building in the village. Please continue to pray that villagers would see Christ in this practical demonstration of His love.

Please also continue to pray for our student, Michael. He returned to Green Valley but is still experiencing some stomach pain and almost went home to Burma. He has decided to stay but is still needing medical attention.

Hope you are all well! It will be a while until my next update as we will be very busy in the next two weeks.

Take care,
Katie

Paul and Sheila Gunderson, both members of GCF are heading to Missouri to continue their missions training in August 2006. God has been making them ready for the challenges of foreign missions for a long time. Paul and Sheila are uniquely prepared. Both have nursing degrees and Bible college training. Both have had extensive exposure to the blessings, needs and hardships of foreign missions. The next two years will serve as their final preparation with New Tribes Missions before they head-out to a yet to be determined location, live with an indigenous people that has never heard the Gospel, and plant a church among them. They plan to serve long-term, initiating a healthy, sustainable work. The elders and staff of GCF recognize this as God’s work among us, and want us to realize the opportunity to support Paul and Sheila. There are several ways you can be active in this ministry, beginning with prayer. They have a website at http://www.paulandsheila.com/ (you can also click on the blog title) that will keep you updated regularly on their happenings and give insight into their prayer needs. Please remember them frequently and specifically, and consider supporting their work through your giving and in other ways as well.

Hola de Brad

We're here in Maraciabo trying to get packed up to come back home. This has been such an amazing trip, God has been so faithful and shown His glory countless times. We were in San Cristobal for 3 days and we saw several students come to the Lord while we were there. God was so good and even used my broken wrist to help bring two students to turn the lives over to Him. What a blessing, I was praying that God would use my broken wrist to bring Him glory and He did just that. I'm linking some more pictures that show some of the beautiful country and some of our amazing adventures. Pray for a safe flight home, we will see you all soon.

In His Name and Glory,
Brad, Josh and Gordon

hello all,

We are currently in San Cristobal working with 16 other staff and stinters as well as 8 local students to begin a student ministry at University of Los Andes. Please be praying for tomorrow's meeting for Vida Estudiantil (Student Life).

More to come later...

Okay, here we are in Merida! What an eventful day we have experienced.
Breaking bones is not good for schedules! Brad knows the inside of the hospital
in Maracaibo. We took a bus ride overnight to Merida that lasted for about eight
hours. Last night we were able to connect with students at a meeting at
pastor Ramon's house. I preached for awhile and the guys shared, and I am preaching again this morning.
We will be going to San Cristobal later today. We are really looking forward to a fruitful trip (and a four hour
bus ride, too! God is great. Keep praying for us. In Christ's love, Gordon

Hola de Brad

Last night Christian and I had to play a game of Madden '06 on PS2. I won 27-21! It was a great game that came down to the final seconds.

On a series note, please be praying for us as we will be taking a long bus ride tonight from Maraciabo to Merida. This will be an eight hour adventure that will take us through the night. Pray for safety, sleep, and smooth transitions through the guard stations.

Praise God for the relationships we have already developed and look forward to the new ones He will bring our way today.

Hola de Brad

Today we spent time on campus with Christian and the other campus crusade missionaries. We spent several hours passing out information about the lunch and crusade meeting that was going to happen later in the day, along with the honey sticks that Turanskis provided (what a hit with the students).
What a blessing it was to see how receptive the students were to have us share with them. God decided to even use me and my little Spanish speaking skills to witness and lead two students to the Lord, Praise God.
God is doing some amazing things down here and it has been such a blessing to be a part of it. Thank you for your prayers and support. Please continue to pray that God will continue to open up doors for us to share and that we would be able to encourage the missionaries down here.

Patty reports that Gordon, Josh, and Brad left Portland at 11:55PM yesterday, Tuesday, March 14. They successfully arrived in Miami this morning, but with absolutely no sleep enroute; an enebriated passenger apparently decided to serenade everyone on the plane throughout the flight! They should arrive in Venezuela tonight, and will hopefully update us sometime tomorrow. Please pray for God to guide them into deep connections with people in Venezuela.

From: Katie Lepp
Sent: Monday, January 16, 2006 2:32 AM
Subject: INDIA UPDATE # 10

Howdy all!

I can't remember if this is really the 10th update, but we'll pretend it is # 10. No problem!

Last week at Green Valley was fantastic. Charlie Fordham and Steve Thiessen came and went... what a blessing they were inside and outside the classroom! Tonight the annual Worker's Confe