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The Cross Still Stands!
On January 17, 2002, the volcano Nirgango erupted spilling molten lava on the city of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Ten days later, I visited the city for the second time after the eruption, and I stood on top of the lava which had cooled and solidified into a “river” of rock. Not far across the river of rock, I could see the cross of the steeple of the Catholic church which had once spiraled over the heads of the inhabitants as they passed on the streets of the city, but as I was standing on the lava, I saw the cross; it was at eye level. In spite of the lava, the cross still stood. In spite of the torrents of hell, it still stood! The gates of hell could not stand against the Church of Jesus Christ.
The Cross of Christ still stands as the central symbol of the Christian life. It obstructs the entrance of anything contrary to the spirit of Christ. The Cross of Christ stands as a symbol of the spirit of giving—of the Father who gave His Son and of the Son who gave His life. The Cross symbolizes the spirit of giving, and it serves at the same time as a barrier to the spirit of getting, the spirit of this world.
Over the past few weeks and months, I have witnessed time and again the erection of the Cross at the crossroads of life. The Cross of Christ is exemplified in the lives of those who faithfully bear His name. I have watched repeatedly people make sacrifices because they care about lost people. They want to see the Kingdom advance. To put it simply, Christians care.
This has been characteristic of the Church from the beginning. It has been said of the early Christians, “They cared for the guilt-laden—and preached Good News to them. They cared for enemies—and prayed for them and loved them. They cared for slaves—and freed them. They cared for the outcasts—and made men of them. They cared for the alien – and made a brother of him. They cared for the man of another color—and brought him into a Kingdom that was color-blind. They cared for the unclean—and loved them into cleanness, wholeness, and fellowship. They cared with a prodigal love” (E. Stanley Jones, Mastery, p. 275). Jones goes on to describe the triumph of caring: “They cared and therefore conquered—conquered by caring. For the future is in the hands of those who care” (Ibid., p. 280).
Over the last few weeks, I have had the wonderful privilege of experiencing the care of the community of faith. I have watched people give when I felt that they didn’t have it to give. I have seen pastors and other lay leaders make sacrifices beyond the call of duty. I have been amazed, blessed, and humbled!
I am happy to report to you that this kind of sacrifice characterizes the Kingdom. This kind of caring characterizes true believers. Sacrificial love is exemplified in the lives of true followers.
This is good news! Love will win. In a “dog-eat-dog world” the cross still stands. In a ruthlessly competitive world, the love of God will conquer. It will overcome pettiness, contention, ambition, rudeness, self-seeking, and hostility. It will overcome!
I wrote this to express my sincere thanks to all of you. Thank you for caring enough to give financially to our ministry. Thank you for caring enough to pray for us. Thank you for caring enough to keep informed by reading this. Thank you for caring!
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It is a lot of work. At each church, Carla gets the suitcase out of the car, hauls it into the church, sets up the artifacts from Africa on a table and stations herself at the table before and after the service.
“Why?” you ask. Her primary goal is to help children make a connection to missionaries, to their ministry and their work. At the table, the children take the “Africa Challenge.” They complete five steps: 1) walking three steps with the African basket on their head; 2) locating Kenya on the map of Africa; 3) rubbing the goat hair on the head of the drum; 4) shaking the maraca; 5) playing an African stringed instrument. When the children complete the challenge, she rewards them with a piece of candy.
Carla’s goal is to enable the children to make a connection to Africa. She hopes that the children’s interest will be peaked to want to learn more. Who knows? Perhaps God will use the “Africa Challenge” to peak a child’s interest in missions. Perhaps the “Africa Challenge” will challenge some child to serve the Lord on the mission field some day. Who knows?
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On Thursday, November 13, we are planning a “meet-and-greet” in the Nashville area in the evening. It will be held at the Donaldson Church of the Nazarene. Carla and I will share about our ministry, and Dr. Talmage Johnson will be the keynote speaker.
If you are in the Nashville area, you are invited. Please mark the date on your calendar. More information will follow. For more information, please feel free to contact us!
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Progress Report
As you know, Carla and I are returning to Africa as Mission Corps volunteers. We will not be receiving a salary from the Church of the Nazarene during the next two years. While Africa Nazarene University will provide housing and utilities for us and the Africa Region will provide a plan to supplement our health insurance, we will be required to raise support for operational expenses. We need to raise $21,500 for one-time expense such as the purchase of a vehicle, travel expenses, and household setup. We need to raise $1,590 per month for a two-year period for food, consumables, on site travel, etc.
We are pleased to report to you that we have nearly reached our one-time contributions goal. For the one-time giving, we have raised $19,006 out of the goal of $21,500. We only need $2,494.
On monthly support, we have raised $635 out of the goal of $1,590. We need to raise $955 yet in monthly support. We have raised over one-third of our goal.
We need more monthly supporters to reach the goal! We challenge you to give $10 per month toward training leaders for the harvest in Africa!
To partner with us financially, please go to our website and click on the "Give Now" link. If you want to give by check, please make your check payable to: General Treasurer. Please do not make them out to us, or you will not be eligible for a tax deduction. All checks should be mailed to General Treasurer, Church of the Nazarene, P.O. Box 843116, Kansas City, MO 64184.
Please write “Frazier/MissionCorps/Kenya” on the memo line of your check to ensure proper handling and reach the area of the world where we will be serving.
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