M&T Updates: Doing God’s work in God’s way

Ephesians 1:23  
And the church is his body;
it is made full and complete by Christ,
who fills all things everywhere with himself.

Finishing Well

 

Proverbs 15:22 tells us this: Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success.

The work among the beloved P people began in May of 1977. And shortly after we entered the work we as a team got together and wrote up our Strategy Statement which stated what our final objectives were in the church plant, and how we were going to get there. And ever since those early days the strategy statements have been hauled out, revised, revamped, and updated. Yes, planning has always been a crucial part of the work. Someone has once famously said, “To aim at nothing is to achieve nothing.” And so planning has always been a key part of the work.

And that is what the months of August and September were all about. First on the list was the team meetings when the team itself got together to evaluate what had been accomplished, and how they would proceed. Then the team met with our Leadership Team and our church planting consultant to set clearer goals on how to finish the church plant among the P people. A few days later our team traveled to attend the annual field conference where the missionaries were challenged to trust God for great things, and to finish well in all they did. On the heels of the conference, time was spent with our language and culture consultant. Since our team is still in the language learning phase, they continue to get guidance in these areas as well. And of course we had planned to be there for all these meetings but God, who is so full of surprises, suddenly changed our plans!

If you’ll bear with me with a little church planting jargon, let me show you how we evaluated the progress of the church in four different areas. Here they are with sub-points. And beside each heading, you can see what the team evaluated the church at on a scale of 1-10:

1. God’s Word for the church (6)
   • Access the church (and community) has to Scripture
   • How well God’s Word enters and engages with the lives of people
   • The level of authority the church ascribes to God’s Word
   • How the church goes about interpreting God’s Word
   • The church’s capacity to make use of God’s Word
2. The Identity of the Church (7)
   • The church’s understanding of who it is
   • The bonds which unite the church as a body under Christ the Head
   • The composition of the church membership
   • The origins and continuity of the church
   • The way the church relates to others
3. The Life of the Church (7)
   • The nature and quality of the church’s spiritual life
   • The church’s awareness of the overall purpose for its existence
   • The specific functions the church takes on
   • The way the church goes about establishing forms for itself
   • The fruit that results from the life of the church
4. Discipleship in the Church (4)
   • The church’s view of its relationship to Christ
   • The ability to help people make personal and practical applications of truth
   • The value given to purposeful, Christ-aimed relationships in the church
   • The encouragement of members to function in areas of engifting, including shepherds of the church
   • The existence of strategies for equipping those involved in the outreach of the church

If any of you would like a more complete look at this evaluating system, give us a shout.

Our Dear Coworkers

Thanks so very much for praying for our national coworkers pictured above.  They have been such a blessing to the work. They are also our bridge to the P brethren. Without them, we would have no contact with them. So thanks so much for keeping them in your prayers as we seek to work together to see Christ’s church strengthened and thriving in P-land.

Praise and Prayer Items

• Praise the Lord for great meetings that our team had with the consultants and leadership team.
• Praise the Lord for additional clarity in how to carry on and where the goal posts actually stand.
• Praise the Lord that one of the national churches wants to do all the purchasing and delivering of the needed groceries and supplies for the team. This means they’ll be able to log a lot more time out in the villages
• Praise the Lord that He continues to build His church among the P people!!
• Praise the Lord how God has restored my sight. Many have asked and I want to let you know that my sight is great!! Thanks so much for praying!!
• Thanks for your many notes of kindness and love expressing your concern for us with the death of my brother Murray
• Thanks for you continued prayers for my brother Howard and his wife Susan. He has encephalitis and is pretty much an invalid at this point, needing 24 hour care. Join us in prayer for a miracle from God Almighty on his behalf
• Thanks for your prayers for me as I suddenly have been diagnosed with a medical issue that will require surgery soon. (If you want more information, please write)
• Thanks for your ongoing prayers for the development of Bible lessons for the P believers.
• Thanks for your continued prayers for the maturing and multiplication of the P churches

Thanks again so very much for your partnering with us. You are so very much appreciated!!

Leaning hard on God Almighty,
Merrill and Teresa