Out of the desert . . .

What troubles you? . . . Do not be afraid, for God has heard . . . . (Genesis 16:17)

A friend of mine, and  former missionary to Europe, no longer believes that God exists at all. He wrote this recently on Facebook: 

My point? This god of the Bible needed someone to run interference for him...to explain away his awful behavior. There is simply no way to explain away the atrocities ordered by and committed by the god of the Bible. Apart from closing your eyes and shuttering your reason, the behavior of this being is scandalous. 

I don't always respond to statements like this, even from friends. And anybody who is following this knows that we haven't posted in a while. I had been simply stung into inaction by recent events, the most important being the sudden death of the three-year old daughter of a good friend of our son's and his wife.  The words just weren't there.

But I felt I had to write something to my friend's FB post. Here are some comments I posted in response. I've edited them slightly, and shortened and stitched them together for this post:

'In general, I think you're setting up a straw-man god, and then proceeding to shoot him down from your 'enlightened,' 21st century perspective. But none of us [interacting on FB together] have a shred of experience of what it means to live and exist within a totalitarian state that is attempting to annihilate the people of God, or at the very least, assimilate and absorb that group into its own identity. Given the choice between that, and forming a community that reflects and reveals what He is like, it seems that the God who longs to reach everyone had no choice but to contend for His people, and to provide for their well-being.  Yet we presume to judge God's actions based on our myopic and pre-determined standards.' I doubt that He has much of a chance in that kangaroo court.

But that isn't the main thrust of what I wanted to say. I went on later with this response:

'There's plenty of wrong-headed theology out there, usually a genuine, sincere attempt to provide answers that may not be so simple to find. We're all a work in progress, and we are all extremely provincial, both in our theology and in our politics, two realms that most of us hold very dear. They are also very much part of our identity (and we generally feel very threatened when either are called into question). I think, too, that both areas are largely shaped by the context in which we grew up. Personally, though, I'd like to go beyond childish or adolescent clamoring for answers or the thumb-in-the-mouth security of having things my way. I'd like to follow Jesus, the Jesus who trusted the authority of Scripture, the Jesus who called/calls His followers to leave their familiar surroundings and experience more, the Jesus who refuses to fit in the box of our pre-conceived expectations and conditions.'  

Why do I write all of this in a blog about reaching Muslims?

Because it really is about Jesus. Jesus is, well, attractive. What He says makes sense a lot of the time (and when it doesn't, I have to think that the problem might lie with me, rather than vice-versa). 

A Muslim once told me that he follows Islam because it is so simple, which is why, with all the doubts I constantly struggle with,  I can't do the same. The world and the universe is so crazy, so convoluted, so contradictory, and mankind so mixed up, that simple answers just don't work. But a Person who takes all the grief, misery, and doubt of the centuries, and bears it all in one stroke, 'triumphing over all these forces in the Cross' (Colossians 2:14-15)--that draws me. All the doubts, all the questions, all the hopes, fears, expectations, disappointments, and even the despair because the powerful always seem to get their way, or because parents sometimes have to bury their children--He takes it all on Himself. 

I realize that our Christian communities often aren't much of a reflection of this Jesus, or of His kindness. I realize, too, that my prayers are often pretty anemic, a product more of willful unbelief than of trust. It's just that all of that imperfection keeps driving me on--I guess it makes me think I'm in some kind of desert, thirsty for the One who seems to be bigger than any of these things, and gives me a longing for more.

I'm not sure I need Christianity, necessarily, but I really do need Jesus, and the community of believers.  Muslims do, too.

 So Jesus asked the twelve, "Do you also wish to go away?"  Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life.  We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God."  (John 6:67-69, NRSV)

U.S. Director

‘I was in prison, and you came to me’ (Matt.25:26)

I was just in the process of filling out an application form with our state’s Department of Corrections, to visit a ‘lifer’, when it occurred to me that this situation involves a rather unusual twist on Matt. 25. 

I’ve always understood Jesus’ words to primarily refer to visiting Christians who have been imprisoned for their faith. He says in v.40, ‘. . . to the extent that you did it to these brothers of Mine’—and ‘brothers’ is a specialized term in Matthew’s Gospel (and generally in the New Testament). ‘Neighbor’ refers to anyone around me in need, while ‘brother’ refers to a fellow member of the family of God.

In other words Jesus is saying that caring for, and identifying with, the persecuted church, is an expression of our faith in Him. Those who did it in NT times knew that they were putting their own life in danger:

‘Make every effort to come to me soon;  for Demas, having loved this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica . . . .’ (2 Tim. 4:9-10)

In a sense though, Matt. 25 does pertain to visiting prisoners in general, because every prisoner (neighbor) is a potential brother or sister in Christ.

The interesting thing in this case is that I am truly hoping to visit a brother in Christ, in fact, his application for long-term service with ReachAcross arrived here in the office yesterday. Think about that—

there’s no question about his field of service, he’s already there. No visas or expensive plane flights necessary.

There’s not really any question about his calling. God has already used him in reaching Muslims, in fact, he’s written his own tracts. Normally inmates aren’t allowed to visit religious services or teaching sessions in a religion that is not their own, but it happens to be possible in this particular prison.

‘Raymond’ (not his real name) came to know Christ during his first year of incarceration. Eventually he earned his GED, or high school diploma equivalency. Then he completed a two-year, Associate of Arts degree in Bible and theology, in order to become a chaplain’s assistant. That’s what he’s doing now—and God has placed him in a dorm with a lot of Muslims.

Please pray for Raymond. It isn’t easy, and it isn’t safe, either.  In his own words:

‘In the last nine months, I have been around more stabbings, fights, and robberies than in my entire bid [slang term for prison time]! Last year there was a heinous murder/mutilation and a riot.’

Pray for us, too, as we visit Raymond and consider his application papers. Pray that a visit will be possible—normally they are very ‘picky’ with visitors, and can refuse applications for any reason whatsoever.

There are a lot of things to consider, for example even our motto (‘Helping Muslims Follow Jesus’) could be an issue for Raymond in his surroundings. We’ll need God’s wisdom as we pursue this possibility.

We don’t know the rate of conversion to Islam that is happening in our prison system, but most guesses place it pretty high. With that in mind, can you think of a better mission field?

US Director

P.S. Check out the test question on our FB page!

Upon the Shoulders of Those Who Have Gone Before Us

by the ReachAcross U.S. Director
One of the drawbacks of working today in the world of Islam is the severe limitations we have in telling about it. Great things are happening, among Muslims, but it is mainly the negative news that people focus on—videos that defame their prophet, and the ensuing reactions. (For a good explanation of what is playing out in the Middle East, you might want to read what Warren Larson has written on his blog: 'Reflections on the Latest Incident: Killing and Burning in Benghazi.')

One of the advantages of working many years as a body of believers among Muslim people groups is that we have past experience to draw from. We stand, as one of our current field leaders has said, 'upon the shoulders of those who have gone before us.'

Wolfgang and Beryl Stumpf are two of those 'who have gone before.'

Because the events covered in his new missions autobiography, The Long View Forward: Looking for the Open Door, lay several decades back, Wolfgang (I use the first name because he is a personal friend) is able to tell more detail than can normally be related. Several stories in this book that not only intrigue us today, but also encourage me. Not just to keep going in the face of difficulties (even when it means driving for miles over rough terrain in reverse, because the transmission in the Land Rover is busted!), though that is certainly part of it.

The main thing is to know that Muslims are coming to faith in Christ today because of seeds that were sown back then. We see riots in the streets of Cairo, but what journalists can't tell us is how God is building His Church. Small groups—house fellowships of Muslim background believers—are forming in many parts of the world, even in the Middle East.

We learn, not only from a missionary's triumphs, 
but even more from a missionary's mistakes.
We need to know about both.

As many workers have said, 'we are being watched'—by which they don't mean so much the secret police of any particular government, but especially by the curious, among whom there are surely hidden believers. One comes away with the impression that more would like to be believers, if the cost were not so great. But we have to wonder—how many of us would follow Christ at the level

of investment that they must bring?

The record of Wolfgang Stumpf, how he went out to the Middle East, first as a single man, and then carrying on ministry as a family man together with Beryl, moves me to action, even in my Western environment. We live in a time when the first question on the minds of many Christians is, 'will I find a safe place to put my abilities to work?' 

First, we are reminded that there is not now, nor has there ever been, a 'safe' place to reach those who do not know our heavenly Father. And secondly, competency alone (as important as this is), doth not a missionary make. Even spiritual gifting is not a fool-proof indication that a worker will 'stick it out.' Nothing, not even the greatest intelligence and wisdom, can take the place of availability to the Lord and a commitment to His Word.

Wolfgang does not sugar-coat his experience. In fact, at times—for example, his brief stint at the helm of a missions boat—I found myself laughing out loud. Not at him, though, but rather because of some of my own ill-conceived attempts as a missionary in a different time and place. None of my own history comes close to exemplifying the kind of courage and fortitude that Wolfgang relates here, but the point is that we learn, not only from a missionary's triumphs, but even more from a missionary's mistakes. We need to know about both.

And we mostly need to know that God is faithful, and that those who really experience this faithfulness and His power the most are those who take His command seriously to reach all nations. I sympathized with this brave man and his companions in their futile attempts to save their sailing vessel, the Noor al-Hayat. But I'm motivated to continue because of sentences such as one on p. 73, "I began to understand that it [God's promise] did not mean we would have no problems, but He would

be with us in our troubles."