Kevin Austin at Lakeside, Thailand, and other Exciting Places

I’m back in Asia again.  My first stop is a layover in Seoul, South Korea.  Here are some first impressions:

I woke up this morning at 4 a.m., watched CNN to catch up and then headed out the door to walk the city, which is my favorite way to get to know a place.  I walked up to a 13th Century old fortress.  It’s quite amazing to see the ancient right next to the modern.

I’ve thought a great deal about how vulnerable the country is.  South Korea is just a stones throw from Japan, who invaded in the 1940’s.  Seoul is only 2 hours away from North Korea who threatened to shoot down my plane and any other planes if their airspace was entered.  Also, there’s no place to run – it’s on a peninsula.

Some random first impressions:

• It’s so clean.  What’s up with that? . . .
• What is a “Skin Anniversary” shop?
• Everything seems to be getting recycled.  Which makes sense in such a small country with limited resources.  Maybe they can teach us a few things.
• Every man I see is dressed in black and is wearing a tie.  I’m looking like such a slob!
• Not one people has smiled at me or even noticed that I’m alive. . .
• Which Starbucks Korean mug should I buy?????

More later. . . .

Joel writes: “When I read the quote (see the quote directly below), the question that came to my mind is how do we work together with other like-minded organizations in our field without attaching our particular label (denomination or mission) to the work? We can do that in some limited ways but with current funding structures, people in N. American churches want to see that their resources are being used to further their particular brand of ministry.”

This is an excellent point.

My response is that we must first and foremost be advancing the Kingdom in anyway, every way, with everyone we can. The funding structures and our partners in N. American churches need to submit to this vision. It’s not about us. It’s about God and his glory. If our sending agency can not accept this vision, then maybe it’s time to be a prophetic voice calling for change or we may even need to find a different agency.

Our structures from the top to the bottom must be first and foremost about God and his Glory. Also, we need to seek partners who share this vision. There is too much work to do, too many souls at stake to be distracted by politics or short-sidedness. We can accomplish far more partnering with others on the field than we can acting alone.

What do you think?

“We still do missions as we did it two hundred and fifty years ago. we want to learn a language; we want to send our missionaries to plant churches; we ignore the presence of an indigenous church movement, the restrictions of nations. . . The world outside the church is telling us, if we are going to get the bottom line to have its highest return, we must move from the paradigm of independence to interdependence. Missions in the context of globalization must understand that there is greater leverage in building synergy than establishing our banners. It is amazing how secular organizations have understood the concept and developed partnerships that have brought great dividends to their companies. . . . It’s time to stop establishing our identity and begin to bring our resources together and work together in the context of interdependence. We must find ways to enter nations from all sides and with every opportunity; we should let the values of the scripture speak through us so that the lost are reached and discipled into the kingdom of God. . . The missionaries of colonialism failed the church when they failed to see the handwriting on the wall and prepare national leadership.”

Dr. Paul R. Gupta, President of the Hindustan Bible Institute and College in India

The key question is, “what is our motivation?” Are we motivated by the love of God? Are we motivated by self interest? Are we motivated by a savior complex?

There is a fine line between paternalism and service. It starts in the heart – then becomes a motivation – then becomes a series of actions, good and bad. Service is love in action which expects nothing in return. Service is done in a safe environment of acceptance. Paternalism is narrow and rigid, expecting something in return.

We are all needed to change the world. All of us working together, using our gifts and passions. We can not afford paternalism, politics and self interest.

Recently I read this quote:

“There is no anger that comes close to the anger of an American that cannot get television.” Quoted by Sen. Clare McCaskill, D-Mo, at a hearing on the impending implementation of digital signals for televisions.

Really? This is what makes Americans more angry than anything else? Was she serious or trying to be funny?

I contrast this with the last presentation I did on modern slavery. When I finished I approached a friend of mine, whose eyebrows were quite low, and asked, “Are you o.k?” “No, I’m pissed,” was the reply. Spoken like a true Christian. He went on to state that God was angry too. Absolutely. . .

What should make Americans angry?

No t.v.?

27 million slaves in the world?

This week my family and I are attending the General Conference of the Free Methodist Church of North America. General Conference is held once every four years. Delegates from both clergy and lay sides of the church gather to worship, fellowship, refocus and work together to find the best way to follow Jesus.

Some of the sessions are discussions and debates about a variety of issues – how we do interpret scripture, how do we best organize our structures, how do we respond to modern slavery, to name a few.

I’ve been impressed by the power of democracy and the loving unity of the Free Methodist Church. We don’t all agree. That’s o.k. However, we all have a voice and we are united behind a shared vision. What is this vision? To see Jesus glorified and the Kingdom of God expanding through all the world.

Recently I was sharing a meal with some Thai friends. We were in the country, surrounded by beautiful mountains. I was admiring the view when I noticed that wild fires were starting to spread on several of the mountains. I was alarmed. I asked my Thai friends what was happening, if we should alert someone to put out the fires. They just shrugged it off informing me that people set fire to the forest this time of year in order to help the mushrooms grow.

Then I remembered one of our Thai pastor’s dream for Thailand, “. . . Churches springing up like mushrooms.�

I put the two together.

In order to have mushrooms, the old and dead must be burned. It’s violent. It’s dangerous. Does this apply to church work as well?

I believe it does.

Please pray that God will set fire to Thailand. All the old, useless things must to go: old ways of doing things, past sins, old mistakes. God needs to come prepare the ground by cleansing it and purifying it and lighting fires in our lives and hearts.

Yes, it will be dangerous. But we are at war and war is costly.

Pray also for our protection. We want churches springing up like mushrooms, not homes and lives ravaged by wildfire.

Thailand is fertile. Mushrooms are everywhere. This is what we want for the church. Churches everywhere.

One day at language school, while on a break, I overheard two missionaries discussing their dissatisfaction with visiting churches in the United States. They hated fundraising. They didn’t want to visit churches and ask people for money. After several minutes of overhearing their complaints I walked away shaking my head thinking they were missing the whole point.

Of course missionaries need to raise funds. We can’t serve as missionaries without raising funds. But if this becomes the focus of our relationship with our senders our ministries will, in the end, not succeed.

What we seek is partnership. We are seeking people who are passionate about seeking and saving the lost. We are searching people who want to invest time, money and energy into reaching the unsaved in Southeast Asia. We are looking for people who’s hearts break for the people of Thailand.

If you are already partners – Thank you! If you want to know more about how you can partner with us, please write to me.

Should missionaries participate in the corruption in their country of residence (like paying bribes)?  What about buying illegal software when you can’t find legal software?  Can missionaries be involved in some form of politics?  How do you write a good support letter?  These are just a few of the questions being asked at www.mypromis.org.   Check it out.  Read, be informed, wonder, contribute.  We need to reach the world for Christ and there are many perplexing issues.  We can sort this out together.  See the link on the side bar called “FM Missions Chat”.

 

As I write this my new friends are on an airplane heading back to Seattle.  Nine member of First Free Methodist Church in Seattle traveled to Thailand to bless everyone they met.  They blessed the Thai Christians; they blessed the 120 Thai High School students to whom they taught English; they blessed my family; I would even say they blessed the elephants they rode on as they played tourist.

A couple of stories:  Judy O’Brien was helping some Thai teens make boxes out of Christmas cards.  Of course, the images on the cards prompted some questions.  One girl asked, “Why do Christians worship on Sunday.”  We answered by explaining about the death and resurrection of Jesus.  Then this same Thai girl asked, “Why do Christians sing with so much joy?”  Wow!  We then acted out an impromptu liberation skit with Jesus as the champion and the Thai girl as a slave of the enemy.  After she was freed from her pretend prision I asked, “Are you happy or sad to be free?”  She answered, “Happy.”  I then smiled at her and stated, “That’s why Christians sing with so much joy.”

On the last day most of the students and the team cried.  They fell in love and had their hearts broken for the “least of these.” 

First Church made a real difference.  They touched lives.  They proclaimed the truth with their actions and words.  They loved.  They will never be the same.

** See the pictures by following the link on the side bar!