Category: Missional Living
-
Modern Day Slavery, From Fear to Freedom
Slavery comes in many forms. It exists in every culture…even among tribes in Southeast Asia. I had never seen a tribe so remote. After 2 hours of motorbiking and 3 hours of boating we finally arrived in a small village along the river. The houses sat on stilts, the roofs were made of thatch and…
-
Why Easter is Meaningless (For the Unreached)
The dust and heat of Southeast Asia in March and April is unbearable. It’s Easter Weekend and I’m on my third pair of sweat soaked underwear for the day. But if that’s what it takes to hide Easter eggs in the front yard for my kids to find then I’ll get sweaty. I love bringing…
-
Love My Sheep: Discipleship in the Midst of Persecution
We rode our motorbikes down the valley with apprehension and occasional fear, though our hearts were full of faith. The last couple weeks have been difficult for the more than 60 ethnic minority believers in the village churches down the remote valley. Even the strongest leaders felt the pressure bearing down on the young flock.…
-
The Way of the Ninja: 6 Ways to Define Our Missional Role
Every Asian kid growing up has one time played ninja. You take a black t-shirt, wrap it around your head, make some paper throwing stars and hide in the closet to get the drop on your unsuspecting brother or sister. Movies and pop-culture show the ninja to be a bad-ass warrior. But real life ninjas…
-
The Greatest Pioneer
The very definition of a pioneer is someone who goes where no else will. Someone who does something that no other person is willing to do. Someone who envisions far beyond what others can see. Jesus was the greatest pioneer. The Son of God laid aside his heavenly glory and went to the deepest reaches…
-
Catfish & Rice: Finishing the Task by Reproducing Disciples
In the west we equate time with money. In the Kingdom of God we equate time with souls. Every second someone somewhere in the world dies without ever hearing about the hope offered in Jesus. Every second God is being robbed the glory and fame that is due his name. As the population of the…
-
What Dreams May Come: Pornography and its Effect on the Mission Field
(Special thanks to Inheritance Magazine for originally publishing this story. Much gratitude for telling stories worth telling.) I HAD A CRAZY, vivid dream during my first year on the mission field in Southeast Asia. In it, I was surrounded by attractive women lavishing me with attention. It was a feast of carnal entertainment, and I…
-
Persecution Story
I was trying hard not to shed tears as I was listening to Chanthi’s story. I had asked him a very simple question, “So tell me about your time in prison for Jesus.” Chanthi was from a remote tribe of spirit worshippers in Southeast Asia. He lived in a simple village high up the mountains…
-
The Kingdom of Who?…Model, Assist, Watch & Leave
I walked into an immaculate church building recently and was blown away. It was brand spankin new. You could still smell the sky blue colored paint. It was equipped with everything you would need to do traditional church stuff; sound system, keyboard, projector, laptop, new kitchen, open cafeteria, all-you-can-drink powdered coffee and guestrooms with air…
-
3 Reasons Why Suffering is Essential in God’s Kingdom
From the safety of our homes in the US, being persecuted for our faith sounds like something that only happens in outlandish countries or ancient biblical stories. To be interrogated, threatened, beaten and jailed for our faith in Jesus is just something that doesn’t typically happen in America. When suffering does occur in other places…
-
4 Tips for Finding the Person Of Peace
As I was riding my motorbike through the rain in some rural Asian village I came to a huge brown puddle across the road. Over the years I have crossed hundreds of puddles, streams and rivers. I thought I had this down so I decided to go straight through. It was murky and deeper than…
-
4 Christian Responses to the LGBT Community
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage in all 50 states this week leading to a mixture of responses and heated discussions – my wife and I included. As missionaries on the other side of the planet we can’t help but think of the missiological implications, “How will this affect the faith…
-
Starting with the End in Mind: 4 Ways to Clarify Your Vision
In 2017 we’ll be celebrating 10 years of serving overseas as cross cultural Kingdom workers…that’s insane! When people hear that they often ask how much longer do we plan to stay overseas. The short answer is, “When the work is done.” There is this misconception that missionaries leave for the jungles and return decades later…
-
The Greatest Injustice: Not Loving Those Who Hate
A few months ago I was I sitting in a small wooden boat in Southeast Asia with some of my closest friends and teammates. We were trying to find our way up river through a maze of thousands of dead trees rising up out of the water. The naked trees rose high above our heads…
-
Re-prioritizing Easter: 3 Ways to Share the Gospel and Collect Eggs
About 30 eggs filled with my wife’s “healthiest candies” lay hidden in the small patch of grass in our front yard. After a short reading of the Easter story in Luke 24 my three kids ransacked the green grass filling their baskets with the treasured eggs. I snapped a few really cute photos of the…
The Asian Rough Rider 