Missioblogging: Finale
I didn't get this posted as soon as I had originally intended, but yesterday I had the day off, and Mrs. Hard Starboard had the day off, and the kids were in school, and I got ambitious, and she didn't disappoint, and I'm not talking about re-wallpapering the bathroom.
The Sunday School hour featured missionaries Valen & Carol Straley and Roger & Diana Ward.
The Straleys are affiliated with InterAct Ministries and are deployed in Kamloops, British Columbia to reach the First Nations people in a culturally relevant way with the Gospel. They do this through visitation, regular Sunday services, Bible stuties, and personal interaction. This is more difficult that it might appear at first glance given the predomination of Catholicism, whose overemphasis on legalism and ritual, plus doctrinal errors, contribute to a cavalier attitude about personal sin and the need for salvation. Alcoholism is also a problem there, as it is in so many Indian communities down here.
The Wards, along with their children Sara, Joshua, Jeremiah, and Zachariah (good thing they didn't have a fifth, as he'd have been stuck with "Zerubbabel" or something even worse), serve TEAM in La Paz, Mexico, which is at the southern tip of the Baja peninsula. Roger's and Diana's desire as missionaries is to aid in the planting of national churches. Their specific duty has been working in the Church, doing training, discipleship, counseling, and youth ministry, with the goal of equipping the nationals to take over this ministry. They work in the Church La Paz de Cristo in Baja California Sur, and are looking forward to returning there in August.
Catholicism is also a significant obstacle, just as in Kamloops, B.C., with most of the natives being nominal Catholics at best. This, paradoxically, makes the men more receptive to the Gospel message, since it is the women who cling to the highly Mary-centric teachings out of a need for security and order, whereas their husbands, sons, etc. don't feel (and would never admit in any case) a need to firmly commit for such un-macho reasons.
As a drug/alcohol counselor, Roger has worked in local prisons, building relationships and learning conversational Spanish. This has opened the door working with delinquent youth as well. Providing traveling medical clinics in cooperation with physicians from Phoenix, AZ, and Diana's founding of a post-menapausal women's group are other ways that needs were met and opportunities to share the Good News were realized.
The aforementioned (the other day) Andrew Prout of Christar gave his field report at the head of the worship service. He spoke on sins of omission (James 4:17) - knowledge of needs without helping, giftedness without serving, knowledge of the Truth without sharing it, and hearing the Good News without accepting it. This was in keeping with the common thread established by Kameel Kilada about the imperative of believers to pray for missionaries in the field.
Andrew also disclosed something startling: when Khalid Shiek Mohammed, the al Qaeda third-in-command and 9/11 mastermind, was captured in Pakistan, he was taken in Mr. Prout's own neighborhood.
Did I call his service in Pakistan just "ballsy"? Man, I owe him an apology for the slight. And we all owe him and the other missionaries our prayers.
Mr. Kilada delivered the main sermon and headlined the closing service Sunday evening, which also featured the missionary choir and missionary prayer requests.
I shall strive to make missionary updates a regular ongoing blogfeature. Something tells me it would be as spiritually nourishing for me as it would be for "the gatherers of the Harvest."
The Sunday School hour featured missionaries Valen & Carol Straley and Roger & Diana Ward.
The Straleys are affiliated with InterAct Ministries and are deployed in Kamloops, British Columbia to reach the First Nations people in a culturally relevant way with the Gospel. They do this through visitation, regular Sunday services, Bible stuties, and personal interaction. This is more difficult that it might appear at first glance given the predomination of Catholicism, whose overemphasis on legalism and ritual, plus doctrinal errors, contribute to a cavalier attitude about personal sin and the need for salvation. Alcoholism is also a problem there, as it is in so many Indian communities down here.
The Wards, along with their children Sara, Joshua, Jeremiah, and Zachariah (good thing they didn't have a fifth, as he'd have been stuck with "Zerubbabel" or something even worse), serve TEAM in La Paz, Mexico, which is at the southern tip of the Baja peninsula. Roger's and Diana's desire as missionaries is to aid in the planting of national churches. Their specific duty has been working in the Church, doing training, discipleship, counseling, and youth ministry, with the goal of equipping the nationals to take over this ministry. They work in the Church La Paz de Cristo in Baja California Sur, and are looking forward to returning there in August.
Catholicism is also a significant obstacle, just as in Kamloops, B.C., with most of the natives being nominal Catholics at best. This, paradoxically, makes the men more receptive to the Gospel message, since it is the women who cling to the highly Mary-centric teachings out of a need for security and order, whereas their husbands, sons, etc. don't feel (and would never admit in any case) a need to firmly commit for such un-macho reasons.
As a drug/alcohol counselor, Roger has worked in local prisons, building relationships and learning conversational Spanish. This has opened the door working with delinquent youth as well. Providing traveling medical clinics in cooperation with physicians from Phoenix, AZ, and Diana's founding of a post-menapausal women's group are other ways that needs were met and opportunities to share the Good News were realized.
The aforementioned (the other day) Andrew Prout of Christar gave his field report at the head of the worship service. He spoke on sins of omission (James 4:17) - knowledge of needs without helping, giftedness without serving, knowledge of the Truth without sharing it, and hearing the Good News without accepting it. This was in keeping with the common thread established by Kameel Kilada about the imperative of believers to pray for missionaries in the field.
Andrew also disclosed something startling: when Khalid Shiek Mohammed, the al Qaeda third-in-command and 9/11 mastermind, was captured in Pakistan, he was taken in Mr. Prout's own neighborhood.
Did I call his service in Pakistan just "ballsy"? Man, I owe him an apology for the slight. And we all owe him and the other missionaries our prayers.
Mr. Kilada delivered the main sermon and headlined the closing service Sunday evening, which also featured the missionary choir and missionary prayer requests.
I shall strive to make missionary updates a regular ongoing blogfeature. Something tells me it would be as spiritually nourishing for me as it would be for "the gatherers of the Harvest."
posted by JASmius at 11:56 PM
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