Finishing Well

Jim and Andrea,
with Katherine and Luke

Andrea and I have been living in Central Asia since 1996. My main role during these years has been working with a team to help translate the Old Testament and revise the New Testament for one of the languages in the region. In December our team will have its last official meeting with the project consultant when we will check the translation of 2 Corinthians, 1-2 Timothy and Titus. Once we’ve completed this check, the translation will be essentially completed. In 2013 the team will work on finalizing the text and adding supplementary materials leading up to the publication of the whole Bible in this language for the first time.As the end of this project draws near, I’ve been reflecting on the challenge of “finishing well”. I have a mixture of feelings. Recently a friend commented to me what an amazing accomplishment it is to stay with one task and focus for such a long time. It was encouraging to recall the Lord’s grace in enabling us to continue in this work overs so many years. He’s been faithful to provide all that we’ve needed as a family so that we could live and work in this region for many years, despite numerous challenges. So there’s a feeling of satisfaction and the desire to keep running to the finish line.

But in the past six months we’ve personally experienced many difficulties. It’s been said that often “things go wrong” when a translation nears completion. It seems we’ve had a lot of “things go wrong” in our personal situation since we returned to the field in January. Nothing major, but one small stressor after the other: things breaking down suddenly (seemingly all at once) and needing to be fixed, minor injuries that need attention, a robbery, new conflicts arising, close friends leaving the field…etc. We’re even more aware how much we need your prayers lest we be overwhelmed by whatever tests and challenges lay ahead on the road to the finish line.

There is also the challenge to not grow complacent. As the project nears completion, it’s easy for me to lose motivation. The future after this project is unclear at this point. That uncertainty is something that can become an encumbrance to staying in stride. I need to remind myself that my life and career are not coming to an end, just one phase of it. I feel the need for fresh motivation and guidance for the next “chapter” God has for me. So I’ve been reminded that “finishing well” is a metaphor that relates to much more than simply one project (even one that takes 17-18 years to complete!). I want to finish well in life. I want to keep serving God faithfully all the way to the end of my time on earth, wherever and however he leads.At times I need to remind myself why I’m doing what I’m doing. First, because God called me to do it. I believe He’s led me all the way and I can count on His leading me into the future, even when I can’t always feel it. Second, because I believe in the fundamental importance of people having God’s word in their own language if they are to be truly impacted and transformed. The local church cannot grow to maturity without God’s word in the mother-tongue of the people. Finally, because of the privilege of being a part of God’s plan. God is redeeming all nations from the fall, giving them a taste of the age to come, when all will be remade and all will worship Him and know his presence with them forever. I want to be a part of that!

Thanks for praying for us and supporting us through your gifts to the missions program at Park Street. We, together with you, want to stay on course and finish well. Without the support and encouragement from the body of Christ, none of us can do that.

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. 1 Corinthians 15:58

Click Here for a thought-provoking poem which is a prayer to finish well see

Jim serves as a missionary in Central Asia

Jonah was Not Crazy

Today I confirmed something yet again:  Jonah wasn't crazy.  No, I'm not talking about his hatred of his ethnic rivals in the city of Nineveh -- nor about his madcap attempt to run away from God's direct order.  I'm talking about that All-Important shade-tree...

Okay, I admit it:  I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel for some other way to say...IT'S TOO HOT HERE!  "When the sun came up God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head so that he became faint and begged with all his soul to die, saying, “Death is better to me than life." (4:8)  You know, I used to hate on Jonah and all his drama:  I mean, after all, what's a little heat and sun?  Well, living here, it's no longer so simple to me.

Don't get me wrong:  Jonah's disassociation of himself with the people of Nineveh -- his inability to extrapolate from his own personal discomfort, to their narrowly-averted total destruction -- was selfish in the extreme.  But...still...it was just TOO HOT!  And that shade-tree or plant or whatever it was...well, it meant a lot to him. Poor Jonah.  He was just hot.  (Cue the tear-jerking violins...)

When walking into a too-hot room, my sister once exclaimed:  "What y'all done set the thermostat on?  Hell?!"  I fell out laughing. But her irreverence only makes sense as it recalls to us Something and Someone to be revered, feared...

Please keep us in your prayers.  It is awfully hot here -- in the 120s regularly -- but God was/is right:  My discomfort is nothing compared to the lostness and suffering experienced by those living without Hope.  The pain from the too-hot sun is barely a hint of something far, far worse.  Pray that our city would experience a longer-lasting awakening than did the people Nineveh.  The Lord said, "Should I not have compassion on..that great city...?" (4:11)  May God fill us, and you too, with this same compassion.

We look forward to being in Boston this summer, for 2.5 months, joining many of you as you minister to that great city.  If your Small Group or Christian Formation class or other fellowship has the time/space, we'd love to come by and join in your prayers.  Thanks for always being there for us.

Tom serves in North Africa

Is There Something you Will Not Do?

Usually, when I think of an idol or idolatry, I picture some kind of statue from the Old Testament or even some good things in my life that I try to seek fulfillment from instead of God.  But recently, during one of my times with the Lord, he used a question to probe my heart and reveal a subtle, yet deeply imbedded “idol” that I often overlook.  “Is there something you will not do?” was the question he asked.  As I reviewed my life one constant theme or pattern arose: fear of rejection and ridicule.  I would often make decisions or choose NOT to do something based on this fear.  After becoming a follower of Christ, I experienced growth in this area and even saw many clear examples of God’s hand helping me make decisions based on faith rather than fear.  The fact that I’m on the mission field is just one small example of God’s faithfulness in the midst of my fears—his loving, gentle guidance bringing me to a place I wouldn’t have chosen to go to on my own.  BUT, in all honesty, there were many, many other examples where I clearly said no to God in response to the grip of this fear—there were times when I wasn’t free to obey him because of it.

Recently, God brought to mind an incident from my childhood that I believe contributed largely to the formation of this fear.  I immigrated to the States when I was 8, and less than a year later, during the fourth grade, I experienced something awful.  During the first day of school, my new teacher, Mrs. McNiece, unaware of my status as a new immigrant with an English vocabulary of a 2-year old, doled out some instructions to the class.  We went up in groups to the front (probably to introduce ourselves) and when it was time for me to speak I froze, uncertain of what I should do.  After some silent, awkward moments with all eyes fixed on me, she impatiently lashed out, injecting what felt to me like deep terror, crushing my already fragile confidence.  I felt helpless and idiotic, small and worthless.  I don’t remember what happened next, but I’m guessing one of my classmates from the previous year came to my rescue and explained my situation to our new teacher.

By bringing up this memory, God helped me see that, not only did I allow deep fear to grow in my heart, I also made an unconscious resolution to do everything I could to never experience the excruciating sting of humiliation and rejection again.  I never wanted to be found in so vulnerable and helpless a position where I could be exposed and belittled.  A smile to cover my insecurity, a thin façade of strength and competence, and avoidance of potential failure were all in my bag of tricks.  In effect, I had come up with a self-made defense mechanism against any future hurt by minimizing the chance of rejection by others. Even after coming to Christ, I didn’t realize that I often trusted more in this protective mechanism than I did in him.  God uncovered this subtle form of idolatry in my heart and helped me see that I don’t always trust him as much as I say I do.  At the same time he reminded me of the rejection, isolation, humiliation, and hatred that Jesus faced, even to the point of death.  He was willing to endure all the pain of complete degradation and debasement because he loved me so much.  He understands my fears and my pain, and asks me to give up my own ways of dealing with them.  He calls me to trust him and find complete acceptance in him instead of trying to find it in other people’s perception of me.

So, I share all this as a means to beseech your prayers.  As a person still in process I still have so many weaknesses and I certainly need others’ help in seeing Jesus more clearly.  I also share this to encourage you in your own journey.  Are there things you refuse to do because you trust in something else more than Jesus?  Do you have any “idols” or self-made means of protection that prevent you from saying yes to God and experiencing more of his security and love?

Lord, please help us trust you more each day.  Please reveal the hidden things in our hearts and free us from our fears.  We want to rest in you and experience the fullness of your grace.  How can we ask others to trust you when we don’t completely trust you ourselves?  Please change our hearts, Lord, so that others may see Jesus’ life in us.

Andrew is our missionary working in Asia