You asked me to send my observations and experiences throughout my journeys in the land of ecclesiastic plenty. Well, this letter is more my personal reflections on life and my purpose here in this foreign land, from which I came.
"Stranger in a strange land" by Mike Tracy (miketracy.net)
I go here, there, and everywhere sharing about Europe. Maybe it is pretentious or presumptuous, but I believe God wants to use me to:
* bring together 15 European Grace churches into a network, pooling resources to pursue the common vision of being on mission for Christ.
* create a European service / mission agency in order to send more and more and more Europeans from those churches on mission throughout Europe and beyond.
* create a humanitarian organization that will partner with the Fair Trade "Café du Monde" to do good in the world… in Jesus' name.
Ah, Boh, I've told you many times about a verse that inspires me greatly: "the noble man makes noble plans, and by noble deeds he stands" (Isaiah 32:8). So the vision is clear, but that doesn’t mean I see the path that will lead me to the above destinations.
In sharing this vision, I do not yet have stories of people saved, or even helped because these entities — network, agency, organization — do not yet exist. But that is why I am focusing on them, because they need to be created.
As the sage said, “but money is the answer for everything” (Ecclesiastes 10:19). Ah, Boh, in looking for funding I sometimes feel like Europe’s spiritual needs compete with Africa’s material needs for America's dollar. And who am I to tell people what to do with their money? That is truly between them and God. Africa’s need is great. Europe’s need is great, just in extremely different ways.
So will backers come forth? Financial backers yes, but I need to know that people are with me in prayer, on mission together on the Dark Continent that birthed the Enlightenment.
Ah, Boh, you are introspective so you will understand my self-interrogations. Questions are legion:
Have I been gone for so long that I no longer know how to present a message that makes sense to the people of this plausibility structure? Do I just need better marketing to capture my audience? Is God leading me into a different, more sustainable way of being on mission for him? Question engenders query.
Incessant introspection causes me to live the present badly, yet I believe that God still has good works for me to walk in. And I know that he wants to transform me. So instead of living under the financial Damocles sword of discovering new sources of financing, I am (again) learning to trust in the Father’s love and provision.
So, rather than erratic existence resulting from projection into an unpredictable future, I have been spending more time in the solid past, reviewing God’s historical faithfulness in my life. He really has taken care of my family without respite or pause. Ah, Boh, I remember when…
Old faithful
Well, Boh, thanks for listening to my ramblings, for caring and for praying. Hope to see you soon!
Warmly,
Your friend
