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May 2015 New Horizons

Foreign Missions

 

Contents

The Work of the Gospel in Karamoja

Another Sower Provided for the Church

Home Churches?

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The Work of the Gospel in Karamoja

Ten years ago my family moved from the suburban United States to rural Uganda—to the village of Nakaale in a region of the country called Karamoja. We arrived to join a team assembled to work, by the grace of Christ, toward the formation of a national church. While it was difficult to leave dear friends and family, we were pleased that the Lord had led us to a new sphere of life and work. We were excited at the prospect of serving him in Africa. Several things were in place when we arrived. A congregation, under the care of the OP Uganda Mission, had been established the year before. There were two venues for Sunday worship and two midweek Bible studies in nearby villages. Diaconal efforts were being made through the work of our medical clinic, our work-for-food farm, and our well-drilling ministry. Meetings were taking place in local schools, where Mission members delivered Bible teaching to the students. Other things were going on as well, and I was glad to be joining such a robust work of ... Read more

Another Sower Provided for the Church

“For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel” (Phil. 2:21–22). What a blessing it is for a man, when, in the upper middle age of life, God grants him a new, meaningful endeavor on which he can work—especially when that endeavor involves passing the baton on to a faithful younger man! For my family and me, this is the twenty-first year of service on behalf of the Lord and his church here in Asia. During most of this time, while teaching English at a university, I have worked with teams of missionary associates in personal evangelism, the discipleship of young Christians, and the training of a new generation of leaders for the evangelical churches that already exist here on our access-restricted field. I thank the Lord for each coworker, for each soul he has saved, for each year of protection, and for every ounce of good Reformed influence that has come to the ... Read more

Home Churches?

One thing I love about Alaska is the pioneering spirit of independence evident in so many people here. “Do it yourself” is just a way of life for many Alaskans. But this mind-set doesn’t carry over very well to a Christian’s relationship to the church. Many Christians have left traditional churches in favor of forming loosely organized groups of people who fellowship and worship together at someone’s house. These “home churches” are a kind of do-it-yourself or homemade church, with no formal organization or structure, and no ties to established ecclesiastical bodies. (To be clear, by “home church” I don’t mean small congregations with proper ecclesiastical connections that meet in someone’s house). I’ve been an OP pastor in Wasilla, Alaska, for about seven years, and our congregation has seen people leave to join home churches. Obviously, I don’t want people to leave, but I also believe that a careful consideration of biblical teaching will bear out my concerns. My aim is ... Read more

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