(uplifting music)
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- Hello, and welcome
to Jesus for Asia Now.
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I'm Natalie Wood
and my husband, Jon,
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is with me today
as we go to Thailand
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to meet the Norton family.
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Hello love.
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- Hi darling. How are you?
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- I'm doing well.
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- Awesome.
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- Now, today we're
gonna meet the Norton family.
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- And we're gonna see
kind of a behind the scenes
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look at their family itself.
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- Right. When we met them,
they had how many children?
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- They have eight children.
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- [Jon] Eight
children. - Of their own.
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- [Jon] And when
they went to Thailand,
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how many
children went with them?
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- [Natalie] Five.
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- Five of them, 'cause
three of 'em were older
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and had their own lives.
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- College age, jobs.
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- So they went to
Thailand with five children.
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- Right, two teenage girls
and then three younger boys.
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- All right, so that's
a good place to then show
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this next video
about what it's like
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to take the family
into the mission field.
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- [Natalie] Okay.
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(gentle music)
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- So when we came and
God kind of allowed us
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to be launched
directly into ministry,
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one of the fall outs of that,
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due to the way
that we handled it,
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was we essentially lost our
family, like our family unit,
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because we continually
were bringing more people in
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and more children
in that were in need.
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(intense music)
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There is a
scripture that tells us
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that God will not
allow us to be tempted
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beyond that which we can bear.
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And one of the things that
we were really convicted of,
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unfortunately, almost two
years into this experience,
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is that that is
exactly what we were doing
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to our little boys.
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It was much harder being that
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we didn't recognize
that from the beginning,
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because then we
had to back pedal
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and transition
our entire ministry
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to protect them from
those types of situations.
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And so we've had to
recreate a family unit
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while not isolating the children
that God had brought to us.
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And it's been a
difficult balance to find,
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but through prayer and just
having lots and lots of talk
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between our family members,
especially the older ones,
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we've been able to assign
different roles to each of us,
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which has allowed
us to really focus
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a little bit more on
the spiritual nurturing
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of the kids we brought with us.
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(gentle music)
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I feel like God
has been so merciful
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to give us that opportunity
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to step back
and recognize again,
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that while he brought us
here to minister to these kids,
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he didn't ask us to sacrifice
the ones that we brought.
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So we're seeing progress.
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(gentle music)
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With our teenage girls,
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they were 14
and 16 when we came,
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I think almost the
opposite to a degree.
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We felt like we
needed to protect them
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and we kept trying to
shield them from too much.
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We didn't wanna overwhelm them.
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And so almost the exact
opposite conviction with them.
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God's saying no, allow them
to find their spiritual legs.
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Don't always, you know,
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be over parenting them
or overprotecting them.
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And so them having to
take on and fulfill roles,
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especially now trying to refocus
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on both aspects of our ministry,
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our birth family and this family
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that God has
brought together for us,
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has caused Hannah and
Abby to stretch and grow
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and do things
that they're not really
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comfortable
doing, didn't wanna do,
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but you can see spiritual
growth as a result of that.
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(gentle music)
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I can see where sort of
the dangers and the obstacles
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that we watched ourselves walk
into without recognizing it.
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It would be good if you
went in with your eyes open,
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so you could avoid
some of that or all of that,
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that we've experienced
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and then had to
take a step back from.
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The flip side of that is
being too cautious and saying,
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"Surely God's not calling
me because I have children
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and I need to get
my children raised
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because it wouldn't
be safe to take them
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because of dangers or
because of influences."
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And I think that
if God is calling,
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and he's calling
each of us to something
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and it's pretty much
always gonna be something
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beyond what
we're comfortable with
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because that's where we
really stretch and grow.
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And to recognize the fact
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that no matter what
situation God puts you in,
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He's going to
work it for your good,
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if you're following his lead,
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if you're seeking him
in prayer for direction,
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and you're not just
running off with some crazy,
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exciting idea that you
come up with on your own.
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And so I think either side
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is almost like an
extreme that we want to avoid.
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Not going because we
make our family an excuse
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or going and just throwing
our family to the wolves
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for the sake of
mission or ministry.
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So yeah, I
definitely think it's something
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that we need to
approach with prayer.
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(gentle music)
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- I think that is such a
beautiful and a healthy balance
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approach to bringing
your family into ministry.
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And that's
important whether or not
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you're in the mission field.
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They say that a
lot of what they do,
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is basically
just mundane things,
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just like living,
what they did in America,
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before they went over there.
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It's just around people
that don't know who Jesus is,
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have never been
exposed to Christianity before.
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- Right.
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- But that balance
between protecting your family
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and encouraging and
growing your own family
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versus doing the outreach
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and including
others in your family.
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What she didn't
talk about was that,
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when they first started
bringing in other children,
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they treated
everybody as equals.
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But when they
brought the other kids in
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that weren't their family
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and brought them
into their family
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and treated them as equals,
it didn't work out very well
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and it was really hard
on their own kids because...
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- Because these other kids
are from very rough backgrounds,
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they're from
slums, some of them,
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some of them, abusive homes.
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And so their ways of
interacting with people
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are not healthy. - Right.
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- In fact, to some
degree abusive as well.
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- Absolutely. - And
so they were noticing,
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they were
watching their own kids
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being treated wrongly, being
abused by these other kids.
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Mainly because the other kids
didn't know the love of God.
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- Right, and so they
had to find ways to manage,
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not reject those
kids from off the streets,
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and yet show them how to behave,
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but also protect
their little kids and stuff.
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And so that focus on prayer
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and finding out
what is God's plan
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and communication
between the family members
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and finding a
way that they could,
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because God's not
interested in sacrificing
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his children for
the sake of the gospel.
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God's given us the great
commission as a blessing.
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Okay, that doesn't
mean that we can be selfish
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and just live for ourselves.
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But there's that
balance of, you know,
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growing in
Christ at the same time,
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as you are witnessing to
others in different places.
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And we have
examples throughout history
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of people dying for the
sake of taking the gospel
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or sharing the gospel to people.
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- Right, right.
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- Christ himself
did that sacrifice.
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- But in Christ's life,
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you see that he
took that time to pray.
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And if we go out
and we don't do that,
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we're not gonna
have anything to give.
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- You know, one
of the illustrations
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you could use is
Christ with his disciples.
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He had done everything
he could to reach them.
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And yet, because of their
preconceived ideas or whatever,
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they had these
other are ways of thinking
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that didn't match with
what he was trying to show them
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until after he died,
and then they spent the time
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praying together and
then they figured out.
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- But even after
that, they weren't perfect.
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- Right, right.
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- So there's always
room for that growth.
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- [Natalie] Right.
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- And seeing God, I mean.
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You never get to the
place in your Christian growth
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where you're not in
desperate need of prayer.
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- Right.
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- And seeing Christ more
fully than you ever have before.
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That is the definition
of the Christian life,
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is spending that
time in God's presence,
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taking from
heaven to give to earth.
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- Right, I read an illustration
just this morning actually,
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that said that
Jesus is our prayer.
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- Wow.
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- It's like, because of
his merits, we can pray,
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so therefore he is the
prayer between us and God.
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It's just like.
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- [Jon] He's that connection.
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- I like that. It's beautiful.
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He's the connection, exactly.
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And that's what he's
described in the Bible,
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as the stairway that Jacob saw
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where the angels were
ascending and descending.
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- He gave up everything,
surrendered everything
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as God, became a man,
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inherited
everything back as a man.
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And so we have a
man, there's a man
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sitting at the right
hand of God on the throne
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that is our advocate.
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What a amazing,
beautiful thought that that is.
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- Anyway, so we wanna get
back to our stories for today.
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- [Jon] Okay.
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- And the next video we have
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is about the two older children
that she was talking about
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and how they
needed to be challenged
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for their spiritual
growth in a different way.
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- And so this is
about Hannah and Abby.
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- [Jon] Awesome.
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(gentle music)
00:10:00.10\00:10:02.80
- So I was 16 when
we came to Thailand.
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The expectations
weren't (chuckles) exactly met
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in the way I thought
they were going to be.
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I think I had a
hard time before we came.
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So I struggled a lot with
the fact that we were leaving,
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'cause it wasn't
something like I expected.
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I had some plans
lined up for the next year
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and I wasn't ready, I didn't
feel like I was ready to leave.
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So, and then when we got here,
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I pictured it more
to be like the books.
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Like the books you
read and just how it feels
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like you're
living a missionary life,
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whereas I think in reality
it doesn't feel like that.
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It just feels like you're
going throughout normal life
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in a foreign country,
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trying to do what
God is asking you to do.
00:10:48.31\00:10:50.48
(gentle music)
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- I was 14 when we
arrived in Thailand
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and it was a cool experience.
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At first I was
really enjoying it.
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I was enjoying
trying all the new foods
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and meeting new people.
00:11:03.86\00:11:06.39
But about a month and a
half after we came to Thailand,
00:11:06.39\00:11:09.26
I like, I really
didn't wanna be here.
00:11:09.26\00:11:12.60
I wanted to go back right.
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Right around that time,
00:11:13.90\00:11:14.70
we also had gotten two new kids
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and I guess it was
just really hard time.
00:11:17.81\00:11:20.71
And as time went on, it
got better, slowly got better.
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I think just being here and
getting accustomed to things
00:11:24.61\00:11:28.45
and also meeting
other missionaries
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and hearing their
stories about different things.
00:11:32.69\00:11:35.62
I think that's the point
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where I started to
really love Thailand.
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(gentle music)
00:11:38.36\00:11:41.06
I definitely struggled
a lot with culture shock.
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It was unexpected. (chuckles)
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I don't think I knew the
definition of culture shock
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before I came and I didn't
expect it to happen to me.
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What helped me to get
over the culture shock
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was when Wind and Sky came
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and also when we
moved to Sukhothai.
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When Wind and Sky came,
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it was like having
to put the focus on them
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'cause they were
newer than we were.
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It was two weeks after we
got to Sukhothai that they came.
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And so they were newer than us
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and we didn't
speak the same language.
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So it was like
completely different again.
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But it was a
good kind of different
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because it pushed me
out of the slump I was in,
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it pushed me out of feeling
bad for myself and feeling pity.
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So that was super helpful.
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And I still struggled
a lot with it after that
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but I was able to go
to God and to be like,
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this is where
God wants me to be.
00:12:40.89\00:12:41.92
This is what God
wants me to be doing.
00:12:41.92\00:12:43.02
Because I think
before I kind of turned it
00:12:43.02\00:12:45.03
into something that my
parents were called to do.
00:12:45.03\00:12:47.93
And when it's like that,
00:12:47.93\00:12:49.56
it's like you don't
feel like you have a purpose.
00:12:49.56\00:12:51.57
You don't feel like
you're supposed to be,
00:12:51.57\00:12:53.40
that God's actually
calling you to that.
00:12:53.40\00:12:55.10
But I think when you're young,
00:12:55.10\00:12:57.01
God is calling you to
do kind of the same thing
00:12:57.01\00:12:58.94
that your parents are doing.
00:12:58.94\00:13:00.21
(gentle music)
00:13:00.21\00:13:02.91
- There are a lot
of different reasons
00:13:05.45\00:13:07.05
like why I don't
wanna go back to America.
00:13:07.05\00:13:10.42
Well, I wanna go back to visit,
00:13:10.42\00:13:12.22
but getting to watch,
especially with the kids,
00:13:12.22\00:13:16.19
seeing the changes in their
attitudes and how they act,
00:13:16.19\00:13:21.23
that's really rewarding
to be able to see that.
00:13:22.36\00:13:24.13
And it's
definitely much more rewarding
00:13:24.13\00:13:28.24
than I think what
we had in America.
00:13:28.24\00:13:30.47
(gentle music)
00:13:30.47\00:13:33.21
I think the
challenges of living here,
00:13:34.51\00:13:36.21
are number one, the heat.
00:13:36.21\00:13:37.58
I'm not used to so much
intense heat all the time.
00:13:37.58\00:13:40.88
And the food,
'cause I like my food,
00:13:40.88\00:13:45.32
but I like American food.
00:13:45.32\00:13:46.99
And also the separation
from my own culture and people
00:13:46.99\00:13:52.06
because we live in a
spot where there's not a lot
00:13:53.43\00:13:55.26
of other
missionaries or foreigners.
00:13:55.26\00:13:57.53
So there's not a lot of people
you can kind of relate with
00:13:57.53\00:14:00.54
'cause Thai culture is very
different than American culture.
00:14:00.54\00:14:04.41
And also, the kids.
00:14:04.41\00:14:07.24
I struggle a lot with that.
00:14:07.24\00:14:08.74
I think it's like a
daily, constant struggle.
00:14:10.05\00:14:12.61
Like that's one
of my hardest places
00:14:12.61\00:14:15.82
'cause I find like a
lot of weaknesses in myself.
00:14:15.82\00:14:18.22
(gentle music)
00:14:18.22\00:14:20.96
What makes it worth it
is just the purpose I feel.
00:14:23.02\00:14:27.23
I feel like I'm doing
something that's worthwhile
00:14:27.23\00:14:30.63
and just knowing where
the kids have come from
00:14:30.63\00:14:34.24
and what could
have happened to them
00:14:34.24\00:14:36.77
had they not had
a safe place to go.
00:14:36.77\00:14:38.67
I think definitely that
00:14:40.44\00:14:42.04
because I can't
imagine not having one of them
00:14:42.04\00:14:46.45
and just the relationship
I have with them now,
00:14:46.45\00:14:49.78
just how close we are.
00:14:49.78\00:14:51.59
And I feel like I
wouldn't give that away
00:14:51.59\00:14:55.32
for anything in the world.
00:14:55.32\00:14:56.42
(gentle music)
00:14:56.42\00:14:59.16
- I love how God worked
them through the challenges
00:15:04.83\00:15:09.64
and yet has given them glimpses
00:15:09.64\00:15:11.24
of the beauty and the purpose.
00:15:11.24\00:15:13.07
And he's given them
rewards along the way
00:15:13.07\00:15:15.91
even though it was
so hard in some ways.
00:15:15.91\00:15:19.15
- I've seen this
over and over again,
00:15:19.15\00:15:20.55
this theme of, you know,
00:15:20.55\00:15:22.18
I ask the
missionaries, why do you stay?
00:15:22.18\00:15:24.05
Why are you still here?
00:15:24.05\00:15:25.42
They keep coming back
to, they're finding meaning.
00:15:25.42\00:15:28.12
And, you know, we
are built for meaning.
00:15:28.12\00:15:31.23
And a lot of us, I
think go through life safe,
00:15:31.23\00:15:34.46
but without a lot of meaning
and to find that meaning,
00:15:34.46\00:15:37.27
to find a sense of
meaning in your life,
00:15:37.27\00:15:39.37
sense of purpose in your life,
00:15:39.37\00:15:40.74
it fulfills something
that God has placed within us
00:15:40.74\00:15:44.31
and to take care of his kids
00:15:44.31\00:15:46.01
that don't have any other
option of learning about God.
00:15:46.01\00:15:49.88
- Yeah, like she expressed,
where would these kids be,
00:15:49.88\00:15:52.95
if they didn't
have a safe place to go?
00:15:52.95\00:15:55.15
- Exactly, so she's not
just taking care of kids,
00:15:55.15\00:15:57.62
she's saving lives.
00:15:57.62\00:15:58.95
She's saving their lives.
00:15:58.95\00:16:00.79
And one of my
most profound moments,
00:16:00.79\00:16:02.32
when I visited
Thailand recently,
00:16:02.32\00:16:05.73
was watching her
interact with those kids
00:16:05.73\00:16:09.20
when they were
getting ready to go to school.
00:16:09.20\00:16:11.40
The pickup was there, it
was all filled with kids.
00:16:11.40\00:16:13.94
They were just waiting
for one or two more kids
00:16:13.94\00:16:15.64
and then they'd go off to school
00:16:15.64\00:16:17.11
and she just
spent time with them.
00:16:17.11\00:16:19.01
She talked to them,
looked at their bruised finger,
00:16:19.01\00:16:22.94
you know, hugged each one.
00:16:22.94\00:16:24.78
And it's like, wow, she
just was there for them.
00:16:24.78\00:16:28.18
That to me is mission work.
00:16:28.18\00:16:30.25
That is the way
God would have it done.
00:16:30.25\00:16:32.62
And it just
brought tears to my eyes.
00:16:32.62\00:16:34.32
And I was so impressed.
00:16:34.32\00:16:35.36
This seemed so
simple, so simple to do
00:16:35.36\00:16:38.26
and yet so
profound in the effect.
00:16:38.26\00:16:40.96
- Well, sometimes we
think that mission work
00:16:40.96\00:16:42.76
is some grand thing.
00:16:42.76\00:16:44.20
Some, grandiose
example or some...
00:16:44.20\00:16:48.20
- Big stage. - Big thing.
00:16:48.20\00:16:49.57
- 10,000 people in the audience.
00:16:49.57\00:16:51.74
- Something like that.
00:16:51.74\00:16:53.11
But in reality, it's
in the little things.
00:16:53.11\00:16:56.31
It's in the day
to day. - Love it.
00:16:56.31\00:16:57.98
- It's in the moment by moment.
00:16:57.98\00:16:59.78
- Yeah.
00:16:59.78\00:17:01.22
- It's connecting with
God to connect with others.
00:17:01.22\00:17:02.95
- Absolutely.
00:17:02.95\00:17:04.22
The other thing that
they were talking about,
00:17:04.22\00:17:06.29
that resonated with me, was
that doing this kind of work,
00:17:06.29\00:17:10.03
it exposes our own weaknesses.
00:17:10.03\00:17:12.63
And so you're all always like,
do I really want to do this?
00:17:12.63\00:17:15.33
Because that means
that I have to grow
00:17:15.33\00:17:18.60
and I don't really wanna grow.
00:17:18.60\00:17:20.40
And this is, I believe the value
00:17:20.40\00:17:22.24
and the reason why
Christ gave us missions.
00:17:22.24\00:17:25.54
He says, "Come and learn of me."
00:17:25.54\00:17:28.24
You know, after you
come to me, then learn of me.
00:17:28.24\00:17:31.81
You know, my
burden, there is a burden,
00:17:31.81\00:17:33.92
it's light, but
it is still a burden.
00:17:33.92\00:17:36.95
- Like she said, it
was my parents' thing.
00:17:36.95\00:17:39.82
- [Jon] Right.
00:17:39.82\00:17:41.22
- My parents were going
and this was my parents' thing.
00:17:41.22\00:17:42.96
- [Jon] Yes.
00:17:42.96\00:17:44.06
- But to realize that
she had a part to play,
00:17:44.06\00:17:46.26
that it was her thing too.
00:17:46.26\00:17:48.50
You know, I think
that's where we need
00:17:48.50\00:17:50.90
that connection
with God even more.
00:17:50.90\00:17:53.40
It's another
example of why we need that
00:17:53.40\00:17:55.97
because God can get us
through the culture shock.
00:17:55.97\00:17:58.44
He can give us the
glimpses of beauty on the way.
00:17:58.44\00:18:00.58
He can distract us
from our culture shock
00:18:00.58\00:18:02.51
by sending us little
children that need help.
00:18:02.51\00:18:05.01
He can, you know,
those kinds of things.
00:18:05.01\00:18:07.35
And that's where
our next video takes us,
00:18:07.35\00:18:09.32
is that connection
with God and the growth
00:18:09.32\00:18:11.99
that God brings
through the situation,
00:18:11.99\00:18:15.32
through the mission
work that they've been doing.
00:18:15.32\00:18:17.76
(gentle music)
00:18:17.76\00:18:20.50
- I was raised
up a missionary kid.
00:18:29.90\00:18:32.54
So the mission field
is nothing new for me.
00:18:32.54\00:18:36.44
When I was a missionary kid
00:18:36.44\00:18:37.98
with my dad in
the mission field,
00:18:37.98\00:18:39.61
we were in Mexico and
he was a maintenance man.
00:18:39.61\00:18:42.65
We worked at his school.
00:18:42.65\00:18:44.72
And so being around kids
and everything was nothing new.
00:18:44.72\00:18:48.26
I played with the local kids
00:18:48.26\00:18:50.19
that were in the
dormitories and stuff.
00:18:50.19\00:18:52.19
(gentle music)
00:18:52.19\00:18:55.30
- Coming to the
foreign mission field
00:18:55.30\00:18:57.60
has been sort of a mixed bag.
00:18:57.60\00:19:01.50
I think
spiritually I've experienced
00:19:01.50\00:19:03.97
something of a breaking.
00:19:03.97\00:19:05.37
God grows you or has
grown me through the experience,
00:19:06.78\00:19:10.38
but at the same time, I
see so much more of myself,
00:19:10.38\00:19:15.45
I think in a more
real way and that's hard.
00:19:16.55\00:19:21.26
It's hard to come face to
face with who you truly are.
00:19:22.62\00:19:24.23
And somehow, in
our lives in America,
00:19:24.23\00:19:26.63
you could hide from that more.
00:19:26.63\00:19:28.16
- Learning to trust God
has been very difficult for me.
00:19:29.56\00:19:33.87
It's very easy to ask God, why?
00:19:33.87\00:19:36.91
Why are I being
allowed to go through
00:19:36.91\00:19:39.97
this trial or that thing,
00:19:39.97\00:19:42.68
but to see God come
through time and time again
00:19:42.68\00:19:45.51
has been amazing.
00:19:46.41\00:19:47.75
(gentle music)
00:19:47.75\00:19:50.49
So, as far as my spiritual
growth, I'm still learning.
00:19:56.22\00:20:00.50
(laughs)
00:20:00.50\00:20:02.00
I'm still learning to trust God.
00:20:02.00\00:20:04.40
But I am definitely
getting to the point
00:20:04.40\00:20:06.53
where I know
that he is all I need.
00:20:06.53\00:20:10.37
(gentle music)
00:20:10.37\00:20:13.11
- I think that whenever
he gives you a ministry,
00:20:15.84\00:20:19.35
especially one that's
continuously changing and
00:20:19.35\00:20:22.95
expanding, there's
this tendency to feel like
00:20:24.22\00:20:26.92
everything
you're doing is worship.
00:20:26.92\00:20:29.32
And while it should be,
00:20:29.32\00:20:31.43
we are to be pouring our
lives out as an offering to God,
00:20:31.43\00:20:35.10
it doesn't take the place
of the relationship aspect.
00:20:35.10\00:20:38.30
And so you can do
all these good works,
00:20:38.30\00:20:41.64
but if you don't
have this relationship
00:20:41.64\00:20:43.74
and this connection with God,
00:20:43.74\00:20:45.47
the whole spiritual
experience is gonna break down.
00:20:45.47\00:20:48.24
And so we've experienced that,
00:20:48.24\00:20:50.45
where you're exhausted and tired
00:20:50.45\00:20:52.48
and you're having
worship with different people
00:20:52.48\00:20:55.75
so many times during the day
00:20:55.75\00:20:57.59
and you start to lose some
of what makes that meaningful.
00:20:57.59\00:21:02.56
And so fighting through that,
00:21:04.06\00:21:06.19
because I think
Satan capitalizes on it.
00:21:06.19\00:21:08.26
He makes you
think that, you know,
00:21:08.26\00:21:10.80
it's okay or
you're doing enough,
00:21:10.80\00:21:12.90
but really recognizing that
you have to put the brakes on.
00:21:12.90\00:21:16.67
You have to be connected first.
00:21:16.67\00:21:18.51
You have no
ability to do outreach
00:21:18.51\00:21:21.91
if you haven't
first done that in reach.
00:21:21.91\00:21:24.85
And so I think for me,
00:21:24.85\00:21:28.42
it's opened my eyes to the fact
00:21:28.42\00:21:30.05
that it's so
easy to tell ourselves
00:21:30.05\00:21:32.82
that we're fine and that
we are growing spiritually
00:21:32.82\00:21:36.59
because we're doing X, Y, and Z,
00:21:36.59\00:21:39.56
but where God always brings
it back to the very basics
00:21:39.56\00:21:44.20
and says, "But are
you connecting with me?"
00:21:44.20\00:21:47.67
Because that's
where the power is.
00:21:47.67\00:21:49.34
- I'm so thankful
that they are aware
00:21:50.54\00:21:52.77
of those issues
and they can see that.
00:21:52.77\00:21:55.11
- Yeah.
00:21:55.11\00:21:56.08
- You know who George Muller is?
00:21:56.08\00:21:57.35
- Well, I do, but some
of our viewers may not.
00:21:57.35\00:21:59.41
- Okay.
00:21:59.41\00:22:00.58
He was a man that
lived in the 1800's
00:22:00.58\00:22:02.42
and he was German but
he migrated to England
00:22:02.42\00:22:06.99
and he felt
impressed to live by faith.
00:22:06.99\00:22:10.39
And so he gave up his salary.
00:22:10.39\00:22:12.63
In those days,
they used to rent pews.
00:22:12.63\00:22:14.56
That's how they
earned an income.
00:22:14.56\00:22:15.36
- Paid the Minister.
00:22:15.36\00:22:16.50
- He gave that up and
he went only by faith.
00:22:16.50\00:22:19.03
And he never
asked anybody for money.
00:22:19.03\00:22:21.34
He never told
anybody about his needs.
00:22:21.34\00:22:23.71
He just told God.
00:22:23.71\00:22:25.57
And then God called
him to set up an orphanage.
00:22:25.57\00:22:28.41
And during the
course of his life,
00:22:28.41\00:22:30.51
he took care of 10,000 orphans.
00:22:30.51\00:22:33.21
And in today's money,
00:22:33.21\00:22:34.58
almost $200 million
went through his hands.
00:22:34.58\00:22:37.65
And so he had a
very stressful life
00:22:37.65\00:22:40.52
and he said his rule, his
number one job in the morning
00:22:40.52\00:22:45.03
was to make his
soul happy in the Lord.
00:22:45.03\00:22:48.33
So he would take that
time to be in the Word,
00:22:48.33\00:22:51.97
to be in prayer,
to connect with God,
00:22:51.97\00:22:54.37
to the point where he felt happy
00:22:54.37\00:22:56.60
and relaxed and
loved in the Lord.
00:22:56.60\00:22:59.24
And then he could
go out through his day
00:22:59.24\00:23:01.08
and give that happiness,
give that joy to others.
00:23:01.08\00:23:03.68
- And one thing that Robbie
said, you know, he's like,
00:23:03.68\00:23:06.31
we could ask why, why am
I going through this trial?
00:23:06.31\00:23:08.98
But then I remember how
God takes care of everything.
00:23:08.98\00:23:12.65
And that's another
thing that George Muller said.
00:23:12.65\00:23:14.69
He said, "Trials are
the very food of faith".
00:23:14.69\00:23:17.49
- So if we want our faith
to grow, we have to be willing
00:23:17.49\00:23:20.30
to let God take us
through those trials,
00:23:20.30\00:23:22.53
recognizing like Robbie is,
00:23:22.53\00:23:25.23
that he's the one
with all the answers.
00:23:25.23\00:23:27.90
He's the one who's
taking us through this.
00:23:27.90\00:23:29.50
He's the one who provides.
00:23:29.50\00:23:31.31
And being willing, like
Kasey was talking about,
00:23:31.31\00:23:34.78
to go through,
you know, whatever,
00:23:34.78\00:23:38.81
but to keep connecting with God
00:23:38.81\00:23:40.45
so that no matter how many times
00:23:40.45\00:23:42.42
you have worship in a given day,
00:23:42.42\00:23:44.15
your time with God is special.
00:23:44.15\00:23:46.15
- Yes, and this is the
beauty of sending missionaries,
00:23:46.15\00:23:49.72
is because they go
on the front lines,
00:23:49.72\00:23:51.73
their faith gets
tested, it gets tried,
00:23:51.73\00:23:53.90
and they can tell us
where to keep the focus.
00:23:53.90\00:23:58.93
And so it makes our lives richer
00:23:59.83\00:24:01.27
by knowing missionaries
that are on the front line
00:24:01.27\00:24:02.87
and being a part of
them when we support them,
00:24:02.87\00:24:05.71
encouraging
words, by our prayers,
00:24:05.71\00:24:07.98
by our financial gifts,
00:24:07.98\00:24:09.58
to enable them to
continue to do this.
00:24:09.58\00:24:11.91
It's like we become a partner
00:24:11.91\00:24:13.31
and their experience
becomes our experience
00:24:13.31\00:24:15.65
and it enriches our
experience with God.
00:24:15.65\00:24:17.92
And we may never end up
going into the mission field,
00:24:17.92\00:24:21.99
but their experience can help us
00:24:21.99\00:24:23.69
be missionaries where we are,
00:24:23.69\00:24:25.86
and to enrich our
lives and those around us.
00:24:25.86\00:24:28.43
And so God has built
this whole mission outreach,
00:24:28.43\00:24:32.77
great commission
thing for our blessing.
00:24:32.77\00:24:37.84
It's not a curse.
00:24:38.51\00:24:40.11
It's not a job we have
to do before Jesus comes.
00:24:40.11\00:24:44.18
It's a blessing.
00:24:44.18\00:24:45.55
And it's an opportunity for
us to really test who God is.
00:24:45.55\00:24:50.65
You know, it's
one thing to read,
00:24:51.72\00:24:52.79
"My God shall
supply all your needs",
00:24:52.79\00:24:54.96
and to believe
that theoretically.
00:24:54.96\00:24:57.43
It's a whole 'nother thing
to go out there and test it
00:24:57.43\00:24:59.63
and make decisions based
on, my God will come through.
00:24:59.63\00:25:03.47
We're gonna make this decision.
00:25:03.47\00:25:04.57
- Yeah, and one of
the beautiful things
00:25:04.57\00:25:06.13
is that God has given
Kasey a gift of writing.
00:25:06.13\00:25:09.34
And so she writes
these things down,
00:25:09.34\00:25:11.11
and he's given Robbie a gift
of photography and videography.
00:25:11.11\00:25:15.01
And so they are
being able to share
00:25:15.01\00:25:17.45
some of the
stories as they go along.
00:25:17.45\00:25:19.91
Some of these experiences.
00:25:19.91\00:25:21.85
So, we're gonna be putting
on the screen how to find them.
00:25:21.85\00:25:25.59
But she does have a
blog at WalkingRedeemed
00:25:25.59\00:25:29.22
and that's on Facebook
as well as on the internet.
00:25:29.22\00:25:32.29
And then...
00:25:32.29\00:25:33.33
- She's also written a book.
00:25:33.33\00:25:34.50
- [Natalie] That's right.
00:25:34.50\00:25:35.33
- That's on Amazon.
00:25:35.33\00:25:36.63
- And they have a YouTube
channel with some videos on it.
00:25:36.63\00:25:38.80
So, if people want more of the
stories, some of the history,
00:25:38.80\00:25:43.87
that would be a
great place to go and look.
00:25:45.01\00:25:46.57
- Yes, absolutely.
00:25:46.57\00:25:48.14
- We're also excited that
there's another book in the
00:25:48.14\00:25:52.41
works. More the
behind the scenes story,
00:25:52.41\00:25:55.05
but we're looking
forward to that as well.
00:25:55.05\00:25:57.49
- Yes. Well, we're at the
end of our three episodes.
00:25:57.49\00:26:00.76
We were gonna do one show
00:26:00.76\00:26:02.32
on the update of
the Norton project.
00:26:02.32\00:26:04.76
And this is, and
we've had to do three.
00:26:04.76\00:26:07.23
- Right, because
a lot's going on.
00:26:07.23\00:26:09.10
And there's a
lot of people there
00:26:09.10\00:26:10.23
whose stories need to be shared.
00:26:10.23\00:26:11.90
- Right. And so this is, to me,
00:26:11.90\00:26:13.40
such a beautiful shining example
00:26:13.40\00:26:15.97
of what God can do
when we put him first.
00:26:15.97\00:26:19.67
And the main
purpose of the missionary
00:26:19.67\00:26:21.78
is stated and clear
that their main focus
00:26:22.88\00:26:25.61
is to put God first
and then let him lead.
00:26:25.61\00:26:28.95
When he's in charge, he is
much more ambitious than we are.
00:26:28.95\00:26:34.02
- That's for
sure. (both chuckle)
00:26:35.09\00:26:35.89
- But he's also very balanced.
00:26:35.89\00:26:38.36
And when the 10 lepers came
to Jesus and asked for healing,
00:26:38.36\00:26:43.10
he said, "Go show
yourselves to the priest".
00:26:43.10\00:26:45.50
And as they were
going, they were healed.
00:26:45.50\00:26:48.97
And I know a lot of
times in my own life,
00:26:48.97\00:26:50.87
God calls me to do a something
00:26:50.87\00:26:52.37
that I know I'm
not prepared for.
00:26:52.37\00:26:54.31
I don't have the, I
don't have the skills,
00:26:54.31\00:26:56.91
the ability, even
the emotional courage
00:26:56.91\00:27:00.42
to do what he's
calling me to do.
00:27:00.42\00:27:02.38
But as I step out
in obedience, as I go,
00:27:02.38\00:27:06.32
I sense his healing
and he brings me through
00:27:06.32\00:27:09.52
and I feel myself
stronger on the other side.
00:27:09.52\00:27:13.09
- Right.
00:27:13.09\00:27:14.46
Strength and courage, he
provides all those things.
00:27:14.46\00:27:16.63
There's promises in the word.
00:27:16.63\00:27:18.13
- Yeah, and
sometimes we don't feel
00:27:18.13\00:27:19.80
that strength and courage.
00:27:19.80\00:27:21.60
So we just have to obey.
00:27:21.60\00:27:23.64
And then as we obey, those
things then start to kick in.
00:27:23.64\00:27:27.81
- Well, it is
definitely an encouragement
00:27:27.81\00:27:29.64
to all of us to seek God,
00:27:29.64\00:27:32.81
to let him rule in our lives
and to see what he's gonna do.
00:27:32.81\00:27:36.02
- Yes.
00:27:36.02\00:27:37.12
- 'Cause that's what
the Nortons are doing
00:27:37.12\00:27:38.39
day after day after day.
00:27:38.39\00:27:40.22
- Yep,
absolutely, praise the Lord.
00:27:40.22\00:27:42.19
- Yep.
00:27:42.19\00:27:43.59
Well, if you
have been challenged
00:27:43.59\00:27:44.99
and you would
like more information,
00:27:44.99\00:27:46.59
you can contact
us at Jesus for Asia,
00:27:46.59\00:27:49.70
PO Box 1221,
Collegedale Tennessee 37315.
00:27:49.70\00:27:53.94
Call us at (423) 413-7321,
00:27:55.50\00:27:58.57
or visit our
website at jesus4asia.org.
00:28:00.14\00:28:03.81
May God richly bless you,
00:28:03.81\00:28:05.58
until we see you next
time on Jesus for Asia now.
00:28:05.58\00:28:08.72
(uplifting music)
00:28:08.72\00:28:11.62