Participants:
Series Code: MTS
Program Code: MTS002801B
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00:22 Welcome back to Lyon.
00:24 This is a ancient city 00:26 and behind me you can see some Roman ruins, 00:28 stretching back some 2,000 years. 00:31 Next up, we traveled to Chile 00:33 to learn more about a center of influence. 00:36 I wanted to serve in the mission field 00:39 from the time I started university, 00:42 but for some reason 00:44 I think I'm beginning to understand now 00:46 the way this year has gone, this has been my opportunity 00:50 to work with One Year in Mission. 00:51 Here, the program didn't exist 00:54 when I started University in the States, 00:56 but I always felt that I needed to finish 00:58 my program there first. 01:00 So I think God was asking me to wait 01:02 for this time to serve here 01:04 with the One Year in Mission team, 01:07 but ultimately, 01:09 I started thinking in earnest about serving 01:13 after my third year of university. 01:15 We took a three-week evangelism field school 01:21 in Honduras. 01:22 We did evangelistic campaigns, 01:24 we worked with the students in the Adventist schools there 01:28 also with a children's home. 01:31 For me, it was just an amazing experience 01:33 because we worked with the church. 01:36 We did not go with the attitude 01:38 that we were serving the church in an area 01:44 where they were lacking. 01:45 We went to work 01:46 with an already functioning mission program, so to speak, 01:51 of the Adventist Church in that country. 01:53 And it's really a revolutionary perspective on missions 01:57 when you realize that you're going to work 01:59 with your church 02:01 with other brothers and sisters of your faith in another place. 02:04 You're going to support. You're going as a resource. 02:07 And you go with a completely different attitude. 02:10 And when I got back from Honduras, 02:12 I started speaking with my professor, 02:15 I worked for the professor of New Testament 02:18 who is Chilean, 02:19 and he told me about this project. 02:21 It's a closed call, they choose recommended people, 02:26 not everyone can apply. 02:28 And so I received the call and prayed for about a year 02:31 and here I am. 02:33 So I have a wide range of responsibilities here. 02:36 I am here primarily as an English teacher 02:39 and also to work in youth evangelism 02:43 and with the church when possible. 02:45 I teach English classes in the Iglesia Central. 02:50 I also teach an English workshop for parents 02:54 and the Adventist school here. 02:57 I support the English classes as a resource for the students. 03:01 There is an English teacher here in the Adventist school, 03:05 but I am his assistant. 03:07 More or less I work with Pathfinders. 03:10 And I also work 03:11 with the One Year in Mission volunteers 03:14 and various outreach activities in the community. 03:18 And here in the Espacio Nuevo Tiempo, 03:21 the center of influence 03:22 I teach English classes here and support other activities. 03:27 I'm originally from Maryland. 03:31 My father is a pastor in the Chesapeake Conference. 03:33 So that's where I hail from. 03:35 And it's been interesting 03:39 adapting to the culture here. 03:42 I love it. It's great. 03:43 It's extremely open, extremely caring, 03:48 but again because Chile is a more modernized country. 03:52 This isn't the mission experience 03:55 that a lot of people expect 03:56 from short-term mission trips to Central America per se, 04:01 it's more modernized, more secularized. 04:05 People are not immediately open 04:08 to sharing directly about faith. 04:11 The majority of the population lives in the cities here. 04:15 So there's a lot of indirect evangelism 04:19 that happens. 04:20 And, of course, the people are very friendly, 04:24 very accepting, 04:26 but they also take some convincing. 04:30 So you have to work around the question of, 04:33 are they accepting what I'm saying 04:36 simply because they're trying to be polite 04:38 because this is the culture 04:39 or are we really making a connection here? 04:43 So that's the struggle. 04:45 That's what we have to learn 04:48 to do evangelism cross-culturally. 04:52 I spoke a little bit of Spanish before I arrived. 04:55 I had the foundation 04:57 at least from having studied before, 04:59 but it is a completely new experience 05:02 to speak Spanish in a country 05:05 where it is the native language 05:07 because we don't realize 05:08 when we speak English or our own language, 05:11 how much slang we use, 05:14 how many sayings, how many phrases we have. 05:19 We don't realize how quickly we ourselves speak. 05:23 So when we enter another culture, 05:24 we try to learn that language. 05:27 It's completely different. 05:29 Book knowledge doesn't cover everything. 05:32 It took me about two months, 05:34 even speaking a little Spanish the whole time 05:37 to become conversationally fluent. 05:40 At this point, I am capable of improvisation, 05:44 capable of preaching in Spanish also, 05:48 but it hasn't been easy. 05:49 You wander around a lot of time feeling a little lost, 05:54 not knowing exactly 05:55 what all is going on every moment, 05:58 but the people here are very patient. 06:02 And it means so much in another culture 06:04 when you honestly make the effort 06:06 to communicate with people. 06:08 One of the things that I've made a point to do, 06:10 and that I would recommend for anyone 06:12 serving in a foreign country 06:14 is not to speak your own language 06:19 to an extreme in front of everyone, 06:22 not to go out of your way to speak English. 06:25 There are English speakers in the high school 06:28 where I work, 06:29 but I speak to them in Spanish when I can. 06:32 It makes a huge difference 06:34 in developing the relationships with people. 06:37 It's incredible because I feel like 06:39 it is preparing me better for life in ministry, 06:41 which is what I studied for, which is what I trained for, 06:44 one of the reasons I came here 06:46 was to work directly with the church, 06:48 to work directly with an administration 06:50 that is actively involved 06:53 in outreach ministries in the community 06:55 and to learn from that and to study from that. 06:58 So I am working directly 07:00 with several different pastors here. 07:03 I have a lot of mentors so to speak. 07:06 I'm learning how to use different methods of ministry. 07:09 And also it's an incredible blessing 07:12 to be able to be in ministry and to have a second language. 07:33 Next up, we traveled back to West Africa 07:36 to learn more about Adventist Mission 07:38 in that part of the world. 07:44 The West-Central Africa division 07:46 sends missionaries to the frontlines of mission 07:49 in both the cities and remote hard to reach areas, 07:53 but mission also happens in Pierre's office 07:55 at the division headquarters. 07:57 Pierre is the administrative assistant 07:59 to the President 08:01 of the West-Central Africa division. 08:02 Part of his job is to work behind the scenes 08:05 making sure missionaries are placed 08:07 where they are needed most. 08:08 And while his efforts usually go unnoticed, 08:11 Pierre doesn't mind 08:12 and finds joy in being part of God's work. 08:16 To me, I think 08:18 all those who work in the vineyard of the Lord 08:23 work in various capacities. 08:25 Some do some work that people can see, 08:29 but others also work behind the curtains. 08:33 Even if you're not on the frontline 08:36 for people to see, 08:37 I think that is not the most important, 08:40 but even in your very small corner 08:42 you can contribute to the progress of the Lord. 08:46 Pierre wakes up early at 4:30 08:48 so he can beat the morning rush and get to his office. 08:51 He answers emails, sorts out itineraries, 08:54 and applies for visas for missionaries, 08:56 among other things. 08:57 I don't see it as ordinary office work. 09:02 I work in the Church of the Lord. 09:06 Work in the Church is a blessing 09:08 because we are called to work to be coworkers with the Lord 09:14 in the salvation of people. 09:18 And as Pierre goes about his work, 09:20 he comes in contact with people who need counsel. 09:23 As a church elder, 09:24 Pierre prays for the different people 09:25 who come to his office. 09:27 Sometimes he gives a word of encouragement 09:29 to the missionaries 09:30 who come before they head out to the mission field. 09:33 Nothing could have been really possible 09:36 without the people 09:37 who are working behind the scenes. 09:39 And some of us as leaders 09:41 were just here to represent them. 09:44 And we are the public person, 09:45 but those who are working behind the scenes 09:48 in our division 09:50 are serious workers 09:52 for the cause of the Lord in our territory. 09:55 So we are grateful for their life. 09:57 We are grateful for their talent. 09:59 We are also grateful for whatever they are doing. 10:03 And we work as a team. 10:05 Please pray for Pierre and the team 10:07 in the West-Central Africa division. 10:10 Pray that the Adventist Church continues to grow there, 10:13 and that many are reached for the kingdom. 10:16 Thank you for supporting mission. 10:41 Well, that's about it for today's program, 10:43 and I hope that you've been challenged 10:44 and inspired by our 360-degree view 10:47 of mission around the world. 10:49 We met Jenny, who was serving with passion 10:51 at a center of influence in Chile. 10:54 We saw the challenges 10:55 and the opportunities of mission 10:57 in West Africa. 10:58 And, of course, we've seen the challenge of mission 11:00 right here in Europe. 11:02 And I wanna thank you for what you are doing 11:03 to participate with us in mission 11:06 with your generous donations to Global Mission, 11:09 through your prayerful support 11:10 and through your personal involvement. 11:12 You are part of God's mission here in this world. 11:16 And I wanna thank you for the continuing focus 11:18 if you put on mission in your churches 11:21 to keep that fan that flame keeping it alive. 11:24 Well, for Adventist Mission, I'm Gary Krause. 11:26 And I hope you can join me next time 11:28 right here on Mission 360. 11:57 God 12:00 Maker of heaven and earth 12:07 Maker of the universe 12:13 You are everlasting 12:23 God 12:26 Keeper of time and of space 12:33 Keeper of the human race 12:39 You are everlasting 12:51 You took upon yourself 13:04 To die for what you've made 13:16 Wonderful savior 13:22 Oh mighty creator 13:29 Merciful healer 13:34 You are everlasting 13:42 Perfect and splendor 13:48 Yet humble the nature 13:55 Your kingdom forever 14:00 You are everlasting 14:08 God 14:12 Healer of all human hurt 14:18 Healer and tell the new earth 14:25 You are everlasting 14:36 You took upon your self 14:49 To die for what you've made 15:01 Wonderful savior 15:07 Oh mighty creator 15:14 Merciful healer 15:19 You are everlasting 15:27 Perfect and splendor 15:33 Yet humble the nature 15:40 Your kingdom forever 15:45 You are everlasting. |
Revised 2020-08-14