What kind of impact do you want to make?

A critical question . . . "What kind of impact do you want your life to make in the world?" What is the legacy you want to leave your children, the next generations, the Church, the disadvantaged, the Least, the Last and the Lost?

Ever since our first year of marriage when we read several books about missionaries Jim Elliot, Nate Saint and three other men who gave their lives for the feared and undiscovered "Auca" people, my wife, Leslie and I have sought to make a difference. 

Coming up on our 35th anniversary, we can look back and see our service in churches, camping, as technical support missionaries, teaching in schools, homeless shelters, and even the business and corporate sector. For us there is no dichotomy of sacred and secular. What our hands find as a task is ministry - and makes an impact. Raising our four children into responsible adults will leave its mark as well. 

Investing our lives and resources is part of the impact we make and the legacy we leave. As we steward the time, treasure and talent we are given by God, into what "accounts" are you investing those resources? Following the example of the missionaries who have given their all to the Kingdom, may I make a suggestion? Consider the impact of this ministry and what it can do with your investment of life, finances, and prayer . . . 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Elliot and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nate_Saint

The Sales Pitch

[One of our speaking modules from 1990]: Years ago friends of ours were lured to a sales presentation by the guarantee of winning a prize; either a microwave (that's what they wanted), T.V., refrigerator, etc. You've heard of those before.

If they bought a life-time supply, $2500 worth of soap – that would clean everything from the car to the dog – they would also get the prizes free. What a sales pitch! Someone went to great lengths to sell soap.

Back in 1978 after we were married my wife and I read Shadow of the Almighty by Elizabeth Elliot. You may know of it – the story of her husband, Jim Elliot, and four other men who were speared to death by the "Auca" Indians in Ecuador. They were martyred in 1956 while trying to take the Gospel to this unreached group. 

The actual reassembled remains of Nate Saint's Piper on
display at  MAF's headquarters in Nampa, ID

This story has been the initial motivation for thousands of people over the years to get involved in missionary service. And so it was with us. The death of committed missionaries led to our choice of a mid-life career change with Wycliffe Bible Translators.

Later, while attending a class at Wycliffe's support center in North Carolina, we all shared about how we were led into missions work. All ten of us had read Shadow of the Almighty. No promise of a washer, dryer or microwave . . . nothing to keep the dog clean. But we wanted to be involved in giving the Word of God, whose message received in faith, will cleanse the souls of those who have, as yet, never heard that Christ died for them.

That's how we were introduced to missions. We didn't know what that commitment would lead to, but we made it. If we'd known what we would go through later, I hope we would have had the fortitude to stay with it.

2013: Well, we did stick through it and continued to serve - and have since in various ministries. Now I found myself back at the origin of our missionary quest. As I arrived for an interview at MAF's headquarters today, I came face to face with an element of that story of 1978 when we read that book, and others since. What an emotional moment as I stood in front of what has been for thousands a call to give our lives in Kingdom service. 

Mailbox Missionaries

Overhearing a conversation between my wife and me about bills and our limited funds, our 9 year-old daughter piped up, “Maybe there will be a check in the mail today for $200!”

In 1989, after being accepted as approved missionary candidates with Wycliffe Bible Translators, it was recommended that I get further training in avionics and acquire my FAA General Airframe Mechanic certification in order to better serve in Communications – my technical support missionary position would require installation of radio equipment and antennas on aircraft. Having recently left my position with Eastman Kodak as a Field Engineer – and its relatively secure salary and benefits – our family of 6 was residing in East Tennessee while I attended Moody Aviation.

But while we were only approved candidates, we could not raise financial support through Wycliffe until this course was completed and we were ready to continue our Wycliffe training. So, we had written our friends, explaining to them our quest toward missionary service, and left it to the leading of the Lord through them for our personal support . . . we were now “Mailbox Missionaries.” 

Later that day the mail was opened and there was, indeed, a check for $200; the faith of a little girl and her family was fulfilled and strengthened. Through these vignettes of God working through His people, we were able to trust that our support would be realized and His work would go on as an extension of those who supported and prayed for us.

Such is the plight of para-church ministries and nonprofit charities that do not receive government funding, but rely primarily upon the generosity of donors in order to provide critical relief and services to the remote, disadvantaged, victimized, homeless, poor and needy. This work is only possible through the partnership of others who sense the call to reach out and fulfill the command of God to treat these people as we would the Lord Himself.

Many bemoan the numerous pieces of mail that tend to flood our mailboxes. But I realize that educating the public on services ministries provide and the opportunity for changed lives is often the only way the average person will know of that work. Many times I’ve heard donors make the comment, “I didn’t realize you did all this”; and this from those who have been supporting the organization for years!

Public concern for the percentage of donated funds used for solicitation is warranted. Interested donors can check out charities on websites such as Guidestar.org and review nonprofits’ 990 reports. If a 990 is not available, it is often an indication that the charity is reportedly operating as a church, and therefore not required to file a 990. Donors should carefully consider religious charities transparency in reporting information such as program, administration, and fundraising ratios as good stewardship of their giving.

However, the mechanics of fundraising and accountability should not be allowed to overshadow the ministry accomplished by small charities that exist primarily as “Mailbox Missionaries.” The response envelopes that come in the mail each day are the lifeblood of critical services and can often limit the ability to sustain ministry. When you consider supporting a ministry beyond your normal church tithe, consider if that organization is utilizing every inch of its facilities, every donated penny, and every offered prayer for the service of others and to the glory of God.

And the next time you see that envelop in your mailbox, remember a little girl and a young missionary family whose faith was answered through someone responding to a need. The possibilities that your support provides toward the faith of the organization and those individuals and families that benefit are endless. Your investment is an extension of the church’s responsibility to reach out to a needy world – and often, it is through a response to a piece of mail. 

Rescued from a Cornfield, Restored into Service

I’d like to tell you a story of an airplane . . . (from 1990)

The DC3 is an exceptional aircraft that just won't die! Modern technology hasn't improved on it in decades. It's one of the safest large twin engine airplanes. It has the ability to continue to climb out of a normal takeoff after rotation even if it loses an engine.

The Chief Tariri is no exception. After serving for years in the jungle of South America, it was brought up to the JAARS Center in Waxhaw, NC (where we were going through training) to be completely refurbished. Careful hands worked it over nose to tail – wingtip to wingtip – extended wings; beefed up cargo capacity; new radios . . . boy it looked sharp! Gleaming aluminum in the North Carolina sun with two blue stripes down the fuselage – just sitting on the ramp it looked proud!

All this work was to ready it for a critically needed new assignment in East Africa – in a cooperative effort with Africa Inland Mission.

As the Chief waited for final FAA clearance it was participating in "missions at the airport" events, along with other JAARS aircraft.

As this pristine missionary bird sat on a grass strip in Kidron, Ohio, 27 people buckled up for a ride. After taxiing out to the end of the strip, its twin 14 piston radial engines thundered as the Chief rolled down the soft grass runway. Seconds later, the Chief was plowing through acres of corn waiting to be harvested. Except for one of the pilots who got some cuts, miraculously, all aboard escaped without injury.

The experienced crew had done their best to recover from an engine failure, just after rotation – from a soft, grass airstrip. The line of trees at the end of the runway had kept them from a complete recovery, but they were able to just barely clear the trees and land in the neighboring cornfield. There was corn everywhere, and there the Chief lay, with what appeared as crippling damage. Africa, it seemed, was not to be.

Just before this incident, Leslie and I were just finishing our Intercultural Communications Course and looking forward to our membership status and an assignment with Wycliffe Bible Translators. At the culmination of a 14 year dream, almost two years of intensive training was nearing completion. We joyously told our supporters to expect news of our assignment approval in our next newsletter. Like the DC3, we were ready to take-off for Papua New Guinea.

Our newsletter was written, partnership development plans made, and the children were excited. We roared over the trees and right into the cornfield. We were completely blindsided. Two men were telling us we would never make it in Wycliffe without counseling. Somewhere in the files from our initial Quest orientation course were questions no one had since talked to us about, but fueled concern of the membership office. We were grounded.

We recognized that we had been dealing with a spiritual battle for some time. We met with our course director who was as shocked as we were. He laid hands on us and prayed for us and we felt a complete lifting of the darkness that we had been feeling for months. We got back on track. Finishing our job orientation was a real struggle, as others were given assignments, but we were ministered to by the Personnel and Radio Department directors. They could hardly believe we just didn't pack up the kids in our van and go home. But we changed our plans and went on.

We took a month and a half long partnership development trip throughout the northeast and midwest. We then spent two weeks at a spiritual retreat center in the Appalachia Mountains with a counselor. After a lot of being evaluated, introspection, counseling and prayer, our counselor brought us together to discuss his evaluation. "It's my professional opinion that you are God's people trying to do God's work and Satan is doing his utmost to keep you from going on. You two must have quite a ministry ahead of you." He then recommended that we immediately be given our Member-In-Training status along with our assignment.

You see, a whole group of people went out to that cornfield to help bring the crippled DC3 out and into the repair process. The Chief Tariri is again sitting proudly – on a ramp in East Africa. Loving hands came to its rescue to return it to working condition and to ministry.

We too, had loving hands help us out of our "cornfield" and pray for, and encourage us on to our field of ministry.

The Apostle Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 "We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed."