Hands and Feet

Well it has taken a bit to get some stories to you from Peru because of some sickness and so many events going on here...my apologies.  I don't want to let this opportunity pass though as there were so many things that God showed us about Himself and how He is desiring to work in this part of His world.  There will be some follow-on stories but wanted to first share what God taught us about being the 'hands and feet' of Christ.

The backdrop for Urubamba is definitely amazing.  This cluster of villages is set in what is called the 'Sacred Valley' with massive mountains all around.  Even though our family lives in the rocky mountains I was astonished by the beauty there.  With all the beauty we still felt a little hesitant, as for some time we had been preparing for an area that was somewhat hostile to talking to outsiders and the Gospel in general.  A different team had come the year before and met with many 'slammed doors' and a lack of desire to hear about the hope of Christ.  Many of the people there have Incan ancestry and still make much of their living from the tourism that comes to see attractions related to this history.  They seemed to be fearful of anything that would jeopardize their identity or income, as we all would.

As we began the week, we started to hear some similar stories of 'hardened hearts' but by the second day it seemed very obvious that God had answered the many prayers for this area and was changing hearts to be open to the Word of God.  Some of the changes I think came from the ways we tried to build relationships through sports and the youth that were on the team, but the strongest relationships seemed to form when we showed a desire to help them right where they were at.  It was when we 'displayed' Christs love for them by working alongside them to help them with their day.  Below is one example from the week where we saw this in action:

It was mid-week when Ashton noticed a man working hard at breaking down a wall close to where a new church was being established.  He approached the man and asked if he could help in any way and the man said, "sure".  Ashton picked up a piece of rebar and started hacking away at the wall not realizing that his hands were being torn up in the process.  Through this display of love Ashton and the man struck up a relationship and Ashton was able to share the Good News with him. 

“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.  Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.  Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” – Philippians 2:3-7

What a great reminder that God shared with the team. Jesus first sought after people and relationship then moved to the life giving message of Himself.  Here are some other testimonies of the team from the week:

From Leea -

Today, through the amazing efforts of others, I was able to meet again with the young woman from the store.  My translator, national, and I all went there again today.  When we first arrived there, she was sitting on the curb with one of her friends.  The national shared the gospel with her friend while my translator and I talked with the young woman.  She was very happy that we were there, and she shared with us that after we had left last night her boyfriend had asked her, “ Why do you believe this? You’re a Catholic and are not supposed to believe this.”  My first thought was, “ Does she still want to go through with this?” But God must have given her a great amount of courage, because she didn’t even have a second thought about continuing to grow with Christ.  That response showed me how powerful her newly found faith is, so much so, that she could stand up for what she believed in. Then we shared with her John 3:16-21...My national confirmed with me that she would like to continue to follow up and build a relationship with her.  That was so encouraging, knowing that even though I would be leaving, someone will always be here for her. Then I left her with a word of encouragement, and the promise that she will be in my prayers...God is doing incredible things with the hearts of these people, and God continues to open up doors.

From Sean-

Today I made a disciple of a nation. I was in the town market with my translator and my national. We walked around the market looking for someone to share the Gospel with and we found a young man sitting by himself on a bench. We went over and shared the Word with him and told him that Jesus was the way. Right after we finished he wanted to accept Chirst as his Savior and he wanted us to go to his town that was an hour away to share the Gospel with his people. Since we must stay in Urubamba we had to politely say no, but I felt the Holy Spirit come down on me and I told him that he could share the Gospel. We gave him 3 spanish Bilbles, and eCube, and a couple of eCards. We showed him how to look up verses in the Bible and how to preach to his people and that no matter what he did, Jesus will always love him. Once we said that I could tell that he wouldn't ever forget it. Today was a day that I will never forget either.

Blessings,
-CT

Sports continuing in Tanzania

As God expands His Kingdom around the world, He uses special servants as instruments in that task.  One of these faithful warriors is Yusuph Emmanuel who is the sports coordinator for e3 in Tanzania.   Below is a recent report from what  God did through a recent campaign…

Am really doing [well], more than I deserve - God is so good!

So today I just wanted to tell you a story of some real transformation that I have seen taking place here in Tanzania,

and How God has used the Sports Ministry to change some peoples lives.

So, 4 months ago our sports team, reached one of the community here in Mwanza (Ilemela); there are many kids there who involved themselves in drugs and etc..its one of those groups that people don’t share the gospel to them very often...so our team used sports to build a relationship with them but with one thing in heart...not a short term or just a one day relationship, but a long term relationship until we see the real transformation has taken place in their lives.

So we did that, and many prayed to accept Jesus, we could meet almost every week and share the word with them...they were baptized...and now a church is planted..they have a pastor who has a heart for them and they are now using sports to reach the other unreached groups in the community..isn’t it amazing that WHEN we share HIS story, their story changes as well!!! What an Amazing God we serve.

We would love see many stories like this happen all over Tanzania, although we have limited resources but it’s our prayers that God will grow the sports ministry in Tanzania, many leaders will be trained and many more people will be reached for the Glory of KING JESUS.

Love You so much.

Yusuph Emmanuel

Thanks Yusuph for your faithful efforts for the Kingdom!

The SportReach Team

Peru revisit

Hey all...this is a little catch up blog from the Peru trip...enjoy God's extravagant love for each of us!

This has been a great week watching God move in the Peru. Urubamba is a absolutely beautiful place with towering mountains all around. Each morning we are awed by God’s greatness both in the creation we see and in how He is preparing the way here.

We are mid-way through the week and there are already so many amazing stories. Not only are we seeing a change in the people we meet but also so much change in our team as well. Many team members have shared that their time here has completely changed them and their perspective on what it means to be a follower of Christ. By God’s providence, we have had a chance follow through with the many plans we had for this place including: sports, evangelism, discipleship, church planting, and just serving where needed.

Below is a quick greeting from Laurel and some pics she took these first few days:

Our time here in Peru daily results in strengthening of the local church, welcoming of many new believers into our Christian family, and teaching each of us on the mission team new truths about Christ and our relationship with him.

With only three days of spending time together we have become close, fast friends with the other North Americans as well as our translators and local believers. The stories we share during supper at the end of each day allow us to encourage and share joy with the rest of the group. Here are some pictures from our time so far:

Kenya Field Update 2

Here is a report from one of our campaigners from the second day of field work:

Glory be to God, today was another amazing day! The teams returned to yesterday’s sites and our focus today was discipling the new believers. It was amazing to see how God works after just one day. We would return to their home and get to know them more before explaining the next steps they should take in their Christian walk. We would ask the question “How was your night?” Most responses were similar: “Really well, we have so much joy. Thank you for coming to us yesterday.” You could see the difference in the way some people dressed and the expressions on their faces compared to the day before! There was a lot more happiness present.

We would show the new believers how to use a Bible. They loved learning more about God. More people came to the cell group tonight and many received Bibles of their own, written in their language. Please continue to pray for the new believers as they learn to walk with God. Tomorrow the teams are moving to new sites to start over with home-to-home evangelism. Pray for the people who will be receiving the Gospel tomorrow.

Thanks for Praying...

-CT

Kenya bound!

Hello All,

Just a note that we are heading out for Kenya in a few days.  Below is a prayer calendar to join us in this adventure with your prayers.  You can follow along each day and see what events we will be doing and pray specifically.

Prayer makes a HUGE difference in the field, so we ask that you go to battle with us!

In Him,
Chad for the Team.

To the Limit....with purpose

There are many people out there that are thrill seekers who desire to get farther, find the next outer limit, and in the end  find meaning in it all.  The Huber brothers are among the top climbers in the world.  Kristin and I recently watched a movie called 'To the Limit' about how these two brothers set a goal to speed climb the nose of 'El Capitan' in Yosemite.  This route is the most coveted and climbed in the world and is a daunting 3,000 foot of sheer granite.  It usually takes expert climbers 3 to 5 days to reach the top but the Huber brothers sought to climb it in an amazing 2.5 hours.

This documentary is a great human interest story about the struggles and draw of high adrenaline adventure in the lives of people that live on the edge.  During the film it also highlighted a number of other climbers met along the trail and recorded what drives and pushes these athletes to excel.  A running theme throughout the story was this ethereal search for meaning and purpose.  They felt a draw to return to the wilderness each time not only for the adrenaline but also because they felt they learned something every time they went out...even though they couldn't put their finger on what.

While watching the film, I found myself continuing to try to speak back to them as they sought this purpose and direction among the beauty of creation and how God made the bodies of these men capable of such amazing feats.  Each climber, mountaineer, or adventure seeker seemed to have this same spiritual connection but not knowing where or who it came from.

This movie really moved me as a follower of Christ because we have been given the answer that these adventurers seek and have been given the call to spread it to the world.  This gave me a renewed desire to speak truth where ever I go because these people were so close to the truth, but running in the wrong direction to find it.  God has gripped them with His amazing beauty but they now only see it for personal improvement and gain.

Let's be a light to those in complete darkness and to those scurrying around the edges seeking to have true purpose, direction, and HOPE.  Let's go to the limit for our King!

Blessings.     -CT

It's a Marathon not a Sprint...

God has a race for us to run! 

It starts when we submit our lives to him and ends when He takes us home.  This last week I've been thinking about what kind of race I've been running and how I am leading my family to help them in their race.  Hebrews 12 (verse 1), says that this is a race of perseverance or endurance.  We like to see see the smooth road off into the horizon but this life is more of a steeple chase where there are obstacles and trials...and it's a marathon not a sprint.  If I try under my own strength I always seem to be performing at much less than my ability.  But, when I let God guide and direct me He gives me that little extra that allows me to perform at my peak and bring more Glory to Him in the process.

For me the battle begins when I wake up.  What sort of persona do I take up for the day and who am I relying on to make that a reality?  With 3 little kids waking us up at all hours, and I mean each and every, throughout the night over the last 5 months, it has been particularly challenging to choose the right starting gate.  I hope that I can, each day, dawn his armor of protection and grace to face each obstacle with the same mercy and joy that only he can provide.

I hope that this sparks a calling in your life, as it does mine, to wake each day to ask God to prepare and renew me for that days next section of the race track.  To run the race with all the gifts He has given me to the fullest.

A great example of this is Eric Liddell who's epic race was documented in the movie 'Chariots of Fire'.  If you haven't seen this movie in a while I suggest a revisit.  I did recently and found that I had forgotten how fully they show Eric Liddell's faith and purpose for why he ran.  You can just see how God designed him specifically to do what he did so that God would get the Glory.  His pleasure as he ran was so evident as he worshiped God with every stride.  While others were racing on Sunday, Eric spoke in a church about Isaiah 40.  Very powerful how this relates to our race -

He gives power to the faint,
   and to him who has no might he increases strength.
Even youths shall faint and be weary,
   and young men shall fall exhausted;
but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;
   they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
   they shall walk and not faint.

During this time of year in the ministry it can be tough to persevere.  There is just a ton to prepare for and all the paperwork and planning is not always the most interesting.  I find that how I approach this time of year makes such a difference in my attitude but also the results.  As we prepare for 5 international church planting trips to 4 different continents this year it has been especially challenging to keep my eyes on the course He has planned for me.  As you think of it please pray for these expeditions into the harvest fields where God is preparing vast numbers to come into intimate relationship with Him through the faithful work of his people.

Continuing on in Hebrews 12 (verse 2) I think is a great capstone; as we consider how we race in this steeple chase of a marathon -
Fix your eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith...

-CT

Welcome

Yusuph and Chad sharing with 1400 children  in Kenya, 2010

Our initial goal for this post is to show you a small piece of the immense movement that is happening around the world.  God is drawing people to himself through the faithfulness of His people...sharing...living...running the race!
So, what does it mean to 'Run the Race'.  It comes from multiple places in the Bible where God equates our life to running a race: running to win; keeping our eyes on the prize (heaven); so as to be found faithful; to run and not grow weary, fixing our eyes on Jesus for our strength and purpose. One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Hebrews 12:1-3 where it says:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.  Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

An amazing set of verses that have so much for us.  I hope to unpack some of this and other verses as we describe our journey in this blog so that we might all be encouraged to 'Run the Race' well!

Another main reason for this blog is to better get to know our family and the ministry he has us in with e3SportReach.  A few answered questions:

1. What is e3SportReach and what is your role?  

In short we are international church planters that frequently use the tool of sports to serve alongside national churches to equip, evangelize and establish strong multiplying churches.  We desire to help start a movement but to let the faithful and capable believers in country reach their own country. We also look to help model different ways to build relationships with neighbors through things like sports, medical clinics, or meeting the injustice/poverty needs of the community.

2.  Current trips for 2011?  

• May - Watamu, Kenya
• July - Cuzco, Peru
• July - Huancayo, Peru
• Oct - Chiang Mai, Thailand
• Nov - Costa Rica

3. How is the family involved?  

We look to include the whole family in what God is doing.  Everyone is involved in praying for the ministry and for our overseas friends as well.  Kristin is joining me as we lead a team to Thailand this year. 

4. What are some of your current initiatives?  

Water wells, community development and micro-finance compassion ministries in Kenya.  Combating human trafficking and injustice in Thailand around the Chiang Mai area.

Blessings,

Chad for the Fam

www.e3sportreach.org