What a Ride!

No, it's not the Rapture...

For the last couple of weeks we've been studying the first missionary journey of Barnabas and Paul. They go forth from Antioch, preaching the gospel, in each town leaving behind new converts in their wake. On their return to Antioch, they visit the same cities, laying hands on these disciples of barely 6 months or more, anointing them "elders" of these baby "churches".

Wow!

Now, I'm willing to bet that you and I might be thinking "Wow!" for different reasons. With no speculation as to your reason, I'll simply say that my "Wow!" is followed by "So what is taking me so long!?"

I cannot presume to speak for all my fellow pioneers scattered across the globe. Granted, some are like Johnny Appleseed, dropping pips right and left, watching them burst into fruit trees before their very eyes.

Others of us, well...

So every time someone out there discovers "the revolutionary secret shortcut to taking a city", I cringe a little inside. Back in the 90's, I was one of those success-flushed pioneer pastors with lots of free advice to offer. Too bad I didn't mail myself a letter "To be delivered in 2017".

Truth be told, there are good days, and there are bad days. There are good weeks, and there are bad weeks. There are good months... well, you see where I'm going here. The rollercoaster can be both awesome and petrifying; terrific and terrifying.

NOT the Fortress of Solitude

Most Some days you feel like you're chipping away at a glacier with a shrimp fork. Chip chip chip chip...

In some nations, you find yourself up against a government that doesn't like you OR your "religion". Here, the government doesn't oppress, doesn't restrict, and doesn't obstruct. In fact the government looks at you in amused pity, and says "Go ahead, knock yourself out!" (The government knows...) because in SOME nations, you find yourself in the midst of a society that hasn't tried anything new since 552 AD... (when Buddhism slipped into Japan).

Chip chip chip chip...

However, on SOME days,

A lady with her 2 small children walks into the church and asks "Is this the English Game Night?" "The other night I saw an invitation by the bus stop. I would have never noticed it, except that it was raining, and I had to stand in line by the bulletin board".

Hence the rollercoaster! The exhilaration of seeing God take your feeblest effort... then warp weather patterns all over western Asia, and graciously nudge someone into your church.

Turns out they'd only recently moved nearby. Later in the evening her husband arrives to take them home, but decides he'd like to stay and play UNO for another hour!

Before they leave, I overhear him mentioning to his wife in Japanese "I think this is a church". Naturally, I pounce proceed to tell them about our activities. He asks, "Do you have anything with the schedule of services" and like a magician on espresso I spontaneously produce a flyer from thin air.

Confession - (don't look, Pastor Appleseed)
We NEVER have someone ask about our other activities. Oh, we TELL them, alrighty, but not because they asked. It usually takes miracles, miscommunication, and morbid curiosity to get someone to even step inside our building. And once he's there, you can tell from the look on his face that he's not quite sure what possessed him to come in... ("Newness. Strangeness. What is this, 552 AD?")

So when this family leaves, flyer in hand, the Mizzus and I all but break out into the Happy Prospector Dance. The rollercoaster is roaring down the tracks!

A mere seven days later, after a disheartening no-show, the rollercoaster spirals downward, dragging passengers, both exhausted, and slightly nauseated, to their doom (or to Krispy Kreme. Whatever works).

Sunday comes. Someone's in Europe, someone's moving, and someone went out and married his job (Sorry! That one just slipped out). Sunday night, someone just bought 5 yoke of oxen and was going to prove them...

The rollercoaster does its slow clackety clack up the track.

Friday night, 7 pm, Pastor & Mizzus Pioneer have set out the updated sandwich-board sign on the street. Hot water is boiling for tea. Snacks are set out. Music is playing.

Someone is sick. Someone has a school project. Someone has to work. Someone just bought a piece of ground, and must needs go and see it... Yep! So it's just us tonight.

7:30 I'm thinking about the walk back to the train station. Ugh. We decide we're going to stay longer "just in case". The Mizzus suggest we while away the time playing Farkle (shoutout to Joe & Helen Moreno circa:1997). We lose ourselves in the game (I know). Then around 8:00...

A lady with her 2 small children walks into the church and says "Are we too late?"

Ha! Too late... What's THAT?

She tells us they just HAD to come. Her 3 year old kept insisting he wanted to go back to "that English place". Dad arrives later. They want to keep playing UNO until 10:30. God is good. (Yes, I know. God is ALWAYS good.)

In 2 Corinthians 6:8, the Apostle Paul proclaims - "We serve God in times of glory and shame. We serve him whether the news about us is bad or good. We are true to our calling. But people treat us as if we were pretenders. We are known, but people treat us as if we were unknown. We are dying, but we continue to live. We are beaten, but we are not killed. We are sad, but we are always full of joy. We are poor, but we make many people rich. We have nothing, but we own everything."

Except for the beaten and killed part, we've experienced a lot of that out here in the mission field. I'm sure most pioneer pastors do too, no matter where they are.

So here we go again! Good thing we bought the Unlimited Pass!

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Please keep us in prayer. There's a crazy kid with a bad haircut trying to launch nukes at us. That makes things interesting.