• Our hope-filled future is bound up in sharing the story of Jesus, in discipling others, in bringing those disciples together into communities of believers, and in developing and releasing those believers to create other communities... till Jesus the King comes again!

The WE voice

Posted on January 7, 2022 by wtdavid

In the midst of all the voices seeking to be heard in our world today, one voice that often seems predominant is: the “me” voice.  It is not very often that one hears the “we” voice.

When I use the phrase: the “we” voice, I am referring to that heart response that longs to seek the good of others.  Paul put it this way in Galatians 5:13: ‘It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows.” [The Message]

The “me” voice is focused on doing “whatever it wants to do”; it shuts off its heart from the needs of others and from the need for others.  Rather than serving one another, the “me” voice pushes one to serve self and self only.

Honestly, none of us would say that the “me” voice is a primary voice of our heart and of our actions.  And yet …

The Psalmist tells us to ask God “to search our hearts and see if there is any hurtful (or grievous) way in me” (139.23-24). So, that “me” voice must lurk somewhere in our hearts and seek ways to assert its will.  For example …

— Hoping for a free Saturday for once, our small group proposes to have an outside picnic together on that very Saturday.  The “me” voice comes up with at least twenty reasons why this would not be a good idea.  With most reasons coming from my wanting a free Saturday.

— I have a new idea for our CP team. I bring it to the team, but when pushback comes, I choose to listen to the “me” voice and not profit from the insights found in the feedback from others.

— A fellow worker sits down to talk with me. During the conversation, this worker shares their disappointment with me and the way that I responded in a recent group discussion. The “me” voice goes into overdrive wanting nothing more than to defend myself.

Turning more to the “we” voice is not the simple answer.  Our need is far greater.  The “we” voice should drive us back to Christ where our true identity and acceptance is found; where our only hope for true and complete forgiveness can be received.

Listening more for the “we” voice will help us help one another to go back to the cross and receive again all that we need from the One who came to give His life for us, and to give us the freedom to love and serve one another.

Filed under: Community, One another, Serving | 2 Comments »

What keeps you in the work?

Posted on January 11, 2021 by wtdavid

I’m sure that you have either asked yourself the question or been asked the question: What keeps you here?  What keeps you going when life and ministry get a bit tough? 

We’ve all had one of those days when we wonder how we can keep going in this work of cross cultural church planting.  And we’ve all had someone ask us the question as to what keeps us ploughing ahead when the work doesn’t go exactly as planned.

I’ve started reading and studying through Romans again and found the start of an answer in the very first words of Paul: “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God” (Romans 1:1).  To put it simply, what kept Paul in the work was a thoroughgoing understanding of God’s grace, and the truth that it was God who had sent Paul into this work.

Paul was a “servant” who served because he recognized the depths of the riches of God’s grace towards him (Paul).  And if God had shown Paul such grace through the gospel, then this gospel was for all peoples, all nations. One writer put it this way: “If we would be used of God, we must have view of the gospel that is as broad as the universe.” 

Paul was also an “apostle”, that is one who is sent.  If we were honest with ourselves, we would admit that we didn’t ‘run into this work’ on our own initiative and effort.  We felt the pull of God’s call upon our heart.  Most of us remember and could put words to that ‘calling’. He was the initiator. And what He did was to send us. 

So, when things get rough, when the work doesn’t progress as we would like, our best move is to run back to the Father.  Ask for Him to restore to us the joy of our salvation, to recognize His grace at work in our own lives.  And then remind ourselves who called us, who sent us to do the work of the ministry.

When I remember that latter piece in particular, that it was God who sent me, it can cause me to see how much more I need to grow in prayer and in ‘believing’.  And it will keep my feet from running from the work, towards engaging even more in the work.

Filed under: Calling, Church planting, Serving, Unreached people groups | 2 Comments »

Offer one’s help to another

Posted on September 22, 2016 by wtdavid

One of the strengths of the World Team Global community, in my mind, is our willingness to reach out and offer our help to others.  This notion of community is strong among us and I, like you, have many times experienced the blessing of such service.hands-reaching-out

However, the call to ‘fall on our face’ and ‘look up’ together causes us to ask a deeper question: what is our true heart motivation for offering one’s hand to help another? 

It could be that our motivation is one that flows out of a heart that has been mastered by the Gospel; where the Gospel of grace has ‘gone downtown’ in our hearts and brought about deep transformation, leading to a godly longing to serve others.  It could be that our motivation flows out of a heart that is less discerning and tends towards seeking the value or acceptance of the other as we serve them.

It’s not my work to ‘assess’ the motivation of others.  However, it is my work to ‘assess’ my own motivation.  To do that effectively, I need the Holy Spirit and others to help me.

And it is my work to build up others by thanking them for the ministry and service they have had in my life.

Filed under: Community, Gospel, Grace, Serving | 2 Comments »

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