Just a Glimpse

“I’m looking for a person who is looking for something. Are you that person?”

This is the question posed by a missionary in Colombia. This question sparked a conversation with a man who may have never had a chance to hear the Gospel. I can’t say whether or not this man accepted the Lord that day or not. But, nevertheless, he heard it and most likely has thought about that question since that day in March 2012.

All over the world are people who are looking for something. They are seeking out what will satisfy them. What will fill that gaping hole in their hearts and satisfy a longing that nothing else will? We, as Christians, understand that Christ and the love of our Heavenly Father will satisfy this need.

Today marked a turning point in my preparation for Spain. I believe that God gave me a glimpse of what He has in store for El Escorial, Spain.   

With His grace and guidance, I have a vision that every coffee shop and bar in the town to be a place of true hope. Jesus said that where two or three are gathered, there He is. I want to see Jesus infiltrate these places. These are the places where people gather and share life. 

In days where hope is dim and to people many life is losing its appeal- we have a hope and joy that translates seamlessly across any language and any setting.

These simple buildings can become the meeting place of Jesus and the lost. Hope and the hopeless. 

Where those who are seeking can find solace.

This is my vision.

This is your legacy.

The past three weeks at Cross-training has been full of incredible moments. But what I think I will take the most from is hearing the stories that our fellow missionaries have shared with us in Chapel. On Thursday the last of the group shared their stories and summed up what we were all thinking perfectly.

Mike spoke about legacy. He shared about a number of people who impacted his life and how he was a part of their legacy. And he shared about the legacy he would leave.

Have you considered your legacy?
Whose life have you impacted?

The truth is, we may never know the legacy we leave behind. We may never see the fruit of the seeds we have planted in the lives of those we encounter. The people we meet in passing. The people who witness our acts of kindness, or acts of harsh judgments.

“Therefore we do not give up. Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:18

We may never know our legacy. But we all have one. A legacy that reflects each area of our lives.

In what ways is your life impacting the Kingdom? Are you making choices that reflect a desire to see souls brought to Christ? Does every area of life reflect this? Or are you holding on to something?

Are you holding on the comforts and security money seemingly provides? Or are you really, truly, wholeheartedly  trusting God to provide? He is worthy of your trust. He has provided. He will continue to provide.

Leave a legacy in lives around the world. Trust God to provide for you. Make a sacrifice. Maybe you think you can’t do enough. Maybe you think I’m asking too much. Consider all that Christ has done for you. What would you give to see that work done in the lives of others?

“Therefore, having such a hope, we use great boldness…Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” 2 Corinthians 3:12&17

So I encourage you, I challenge you, leave a legacy that speaks boldness, faith and freedom in all areas of your life. Consider the sacrifice made for your salvation.  What is the salvation of others worth to you?

This is your legacy.

Comfort and Peace

Jeremy and I were asked to lead a youth Sunday school class yesterday morning. The regular teacher told us that they had just been talking about the Holy Spirit, and requested that we share how we knew when the Holy Spirit was speaking to us.

I rattled off some sort of coherent response… I think. But as the service and day went on, I continued to think on the question. How do I know the Holy Spirit is speaking to me? How to I feel His presence? What makes His direction clear to me?

Finally, I put all the pieces together and connected the dots-

I was left with only two words.

Comfort.

Peace.

How do I know that we are in God’s will? I have comfort and peace about our decisions.The Holy Spirit has consistently manifested Himself as peace and comfort in my life. 

Most recently He has given Jeremy and I complete peace with the decision to leave our jobs. The actual decision was made months ago but it has become very real for us over the past few weeks. Our last paycheck will be deposited into our account tonight. I have four more days with a family with whom I have spent the past five years. 

But still yet, I have peace. I have comfort in the provisions God has given us. 

He has give us wisdom  in how to prepare for  weeks or months without income. He has given us resources and people we can trust. He has given us His promises to provide and work all things for the good of those who serve Him.

I have peace about walking away from secure jobs and income. I have peace about an uncertain future. I have comfort knowing that we may not have a lot and we may not have all we need to depart for Spain, but we have a God who has it all.

I am not concerned with stepping out my “comfort zone” because with every step forward my comfort zone grows. Little by little God is revealing His plan and purpose for us. He is providing all we need and comforting us with each revelation in His will.

“But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

John 14:26-27

Days like today seem a little surreal. Life is happening fast and I don’t see it slowing down anytime soon. But peace and comfort are here to stay. They will lead as we follow the path revealed to us.

                                                                                                                                                                                              

A New Season- A New Love

This past week has been one of many, many blessings, both small and large.
Together, Jeremy and I celebrated a huge milestone in our lives and preparation for ministry- We graduated! I walked across the stage to receive with a Bachelors in Intercultural Studies and Jeremy graduated with a Masters in Ministry. Now, after-the-fact, it does seem a little surreal.

Our time at Laurel University is quickly coming to a close. Jeremy has been a student at the school for six years. Five of those years he has worked full-time in the Admissions Department. The last three of those years he has held the title of "Director of  Enrollment Management"- a title so long they had to abbreviate to fit on the door. Two years ago this past weekend, Jeremy received a B.A. in Pastoral Ministry.

I have been a full-time student since 2009. In the fall of 2008, while Jeremy was a sophomore, I came to visit the school with my Mom. I had no idea that I had met my husband that day. Jeremy was currently working three part-time jobs and attending classes. He was a work-study student in the admissions office so he gave me a tour around the two-story, all-inclusive building that is John Wesley College/Laurel University.

At that time, I was dead-set on becoming a full-time missionary, with or without a husband. I had no intentions of being a local pastor's wife or even living in the U.S. past finishing my degree. About eight months into our relationship, my plans had begun to change right before my eyes. Or so I thought. You see, God sure has a funny way of doing things. I continued to jump on every opportunity I had to travel. I joined the school on trips to Mexico City (Jeremy's first trip outside the country), Kenya, and Colombia. 

Now, Jeremy is preparing to train the lady who will soon take his office. I am preparing to leave a family who has been so good to me as their babysitter/nanny over the past 5 years.


The next two months will be the end of a season in our life that has forever changed us. We are asked over and over again if we are ready for the move. At this point, we are as ready as we can be. I trust that God has prepared for this point and He will continue to prepare and guide us as we go. We still have a ways to go in our monthly budget requirement and we will have weeks of formal training ahead of us. But, at this point, we are as prepared as we can be.

I will say this to close- My heart is ready to see the hearts of Spanish people turn to Christ. It is hard to explain how you can love a people and a country you hardly know. But part of God's preparation has been to give me a love for these people. I desperately want to see them know Christ. As this season of life ends for us, I can sense the turning of my heart towards new things as God gives me a new love for His people.

Deuteronomy Chapter 6

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

Father that created me, Son that saved me, Spirit that moves me, You are one. You are one God, the only God to whom I give all my praise. All my heart longs to love you. All my soul longs for your presence. All my strength longs to do your work. 

These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.

Place your words on my heart. Let them satisfy my soul. Let them give me strength. May my children know your love by example. Make my every action lead them to You. Let your words be always on my tongue. Let your words be first and last in my day. When I wake let them be fresh on my mind. When lay down to sleep let them be my meditation. 

You are tangible to me. I hold out my hands and feel the weight of your words. I carry them with me. I wear them on my sleeves. My my home be a place where your word is always present.

Be sure to keep the commands of the Lord your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that it may go well with you and you may go in and take over the good land the Lord promised on oath to your ancestors, thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the Lord said.

I will act boldly as you lead me. I will walk with the confidence in the way you have commanded. Your words will guide my life. You are good and will provide for me. I have hope. I have nothing but You. No breath but You. Your mercy alone.

In the future, when your son asks you, “What is the meaning of the stipulations, decrees and laws the Lord our God has commanded you?”

I will tell them of my Savior. I will tell them how you reached into my sin. My filth. I will tell them how you saved me! I will tell them about the only hope I have. Your love proved me wrong! Not all is lost. You set me free. You broke the chains that held me down. You broke my heart of stone.

I will follow you all the days of my life. My King lives. My King reigns. 

Worship=Missions=Worship

Missions exist because worship doesn't.

-John Piper

I read this quote in a class last year and it has stuck with me ever since then. I have even gone back to read that article several times since the class has ended. I have marked and highlighted something in nearly every paragraph. The gist of the article is this: God is ultimate, we are not. Piper says that worship is the goal and fuel of missions. I find this to be resoundingly true. We do missions because of the passion we find when we worship, thus it is the fuel. Because of the passion we have for God we desire that others may experience the same, thus worship is the goal. 

When we do not have a passion for God, we do not have a passion to go out into the mission field. When we do not have a passion for the salvation we have received we do not have passion to see others saved. We have this passion only when we spend time in worship, reflecting on the beauty of God. Our time in worship fuels our excitement for missions. 

A "good" missionary isn't a "good" missionary just because of their methodology or the ministries they lead. No, a missionary can have the best plans and ideas for ministry but without God's heart for the lost their work will be in vain. When compassion for the lost is lacking, it is likely that our worship is lacking. Missionaries must share the passion that God has for those who are lost. The more we worship, the more we  grow in appreciation for our salvation and desire for others to be saved.

I gravitate to the Psalms when I am not sure how to worship. When I don't know how to pray, I find that some of the best prayers are already written for me...

 ^"May the peoples praise you, O God;

    may all the peoples praise you.May the nations be glad and sing for joy,    for you rule the peoples justly    and guide the nations of the earth. May the peoples praise you, O God;    may all the peoples praise you."
-Psalms 67:3-5

"Sing to the Lord a new song;

    sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Sing to the Lord, praise his name;    
proclaim his salvation day after day.
 Declare his glory among the nations,
    his marvelous deeds among all peoples"

-Psalms 96:1-3

Our Purpose and Our Passion

“I set myself on fire, and people come to see me burn.” – John Wesley

This quote has come to my mind a lot recently. When I think about it, my immediate mental interpretation is that I would certainly run to the person on fire, but I would probably bring a hose. It’s not a statement that you generally hear someone say, but this was Wesley’s response to a question about why such large crowds of people would travel for miles to hear him preach.

Wesley had lived much of his life clinging to an outward Christianity - the Christianity where the works you did were the focus. He said that he hoped to be considered a good Christian by following three basic principles: “(1) Not being so bad as other people, (2) Having still a kindness for religion, and (3) Reading the Bible, going to church, and saying my prayers.” To have an enthusiastic passion for Christ was a distant concept, because salvation came largely from the works you did.

Mel and I came together with two separate thoughts of how our lives would go, but through the process of becoming one flesh, we have spent time with God trying to find our combined purpose. This quote comes to mind because at times it has been difficult for me to find the burning passion of following Christ. I have been in ministry for a few years, and in that time, I have had highs and lows, but I don’t feel that anyone ever rushed to watch me burn. Until recently, I still had this feeling that the spark was missing from my relationship with God.

On a recent trip to Medellin, Colombia, I found my passion. In an individual prayer time, I had to break away from my wife so that God could speak to me individually. As many of you know, Mel has had a passion for missionary work since she was 15 years old, and our marriage had left both of us confused about the calling on our lives. I was resisting the combining of our gifts and abilities and Mel had times where she wondered if her calling was lost or misunderstood.

I realized during this prayer time that I need to quit being resistant and just be open to His leading, so I asked – “God, what do you want for us to do?” And then the answer came – “Go.” I’ll be the first to say that God doesn't speak audibly much, but I think sometimes it takes a life changing moment for Him to clear His throat. In that moment, I found my passion. In that moment, I found the burning desire to follow Christ with all that I have. In that moment, I found hope and a purpose.

After much prayer and conversation, Mel and I took this message and redirected our path. Questions began to surface – Where? When? What organization should we go with? How long? What about our friends and family? – but these questions seemed minor in light of God’s plan. If He has told us to go, then he’ll reveal the path to get there.

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

A couple of weeks ago, Mel and I went to Indiana to interview with One Mission Society. We had been working through the application process for several months and had finally reached this pivotal point. We spent a day getting to know the inner workings of OMS and the expectations placed on us as missionaries. We met people from different offices and learned more about the philosophy of ministry that One Mission Society has had for over 100 years. Today, we received a phone call notifying us that we were approved as Missionaries with One Mission Society!

Over the last few months, God has laid Spain upon our hearts. This is the country where we feel that God is calling us to serve. 1% of the population of Spain consider themselves Evangelical Christians. 1% of 46 million people… and this is where faith comes into play. How exactly does around 500 thousand people reach out to over 45 million others with the Gospel of Christ? “I set myself on fire, and people come to see me burn.” The Gospel of Christ is attractive if there are followers that are serving Him passionately. I want to be one of those followers, and I believe that passion comes from purpose. With Christ, we all have a purpose, and I’m excited that Mel and I have reached the point of understanding that purpose.

More updates will follow, and I believe Mel will be posting something really soon. If you have any questions about the process or any questions for us, feel free to post a comment or to email me at reese.jdr@gmail.com.