Leadership

I've been thinking a lot about leadership lately as I've reflected on past experiences with leadership and my responses to those experiences...as time has gone by and we're in a better position now, I think I'm better able to evaluate those experiences and see them more clearly, for good or for bad.

And now that I'm a little more aware of leadership issues, I think I'm seeing leadership crises everywhere!  On top of that, I'm now much more aware of my own leadership style and recognizing that I need to try to understand what it means for my own life so that I can lead in a way that honors God.

The other day I picked up a book that Miguel is reading called Journeys to Significance by Neil Cole.  I wasn't really looking for a book on leadership, but once I thumbed through a few pages, I was rather hooked!  This book isn't like any other book on leadership that I've ever read (not that I've read that many, but let's be honest, most books on the topic of 'leadership' just sound like they will be boring!).

The author writes from the perspective of "Charting a Leadership Course From the Life of Paul" and again, his book is intriguing because he has an angle on the different journeys that Paul made that I'd never considered before. In the author's words, "This book offers strategic missional lessons that can help you be more fruitful; but, even more, it focuses on the leadership formation that Paul went through." The author goes on to outline each of Paul's mission journeys and how each reflects his growing maturity in leadership.

This quote towards the beginning of the book really caught my attention and I've been camping out there for a few weeks now...

"In its basic essence, leadership is not hard to define. In fact, you can literally sum it up in one word: influence. It is not hard to find books about good leadership, but finding someone who leads well is not as easy.

Many have defined leadership as getting other people to do what you want them to. That is influence, so I guess it is a form of leadership, albeit one that is selfish and manipulative. Even when we convince ourselves that we are readily only doing what we know to be for the good of those we are manipulating, it is still an insult at best and deceptive at worst. It tends to treat everyone as a child incapable of making a good decision. It also leaves the people being influenced unprepared to eventually grow on their own and lead others.

The best leaders are not those who have the most followers but those who develop and deploy other leaders. The true test of a leader's influence is to look at what is left behind once the leader is gone. This lesson, however, is not something that one learns in an introductory course on leadership. It comes with the maturity that develops over the course of many struggles, setbacks and seeming failures.  

Perhaps this is why so few leaders today actually empower and release others but rather corral them in ministry contexts with the promise of services and entertaining productions. I wonder if our leaders have not fought through the lessons necessary to their becoming leaders who finish well and, as a result, have ended up simply casting their own vision and peddling their own influence. Instead of new leaders, the product of such influence peddlers is a growing congregation of consumers who beg to know "What have you done for me lately?" Or, as my friend Bob Logan says, "They're all tuned in to the same radio station--W-I-I FM, What's In It For Me?""

I think this quote has really struck deep with me because we're in a situation now where (praise God!) we have a leader who 'leads well' (we are so blessed!). Our experience with this type of leadership has been in stark contrast to our experiences with previous leaders. We really do feel empowered and like we're being encouraged to grow in our own leadership skills.  We don't have to be afraid of disagreeing with our leader for fear that he will be angry or upset or chalk it up to us being rebellious.  We aren't afraid to make decisions and we don't feel like we're being micro-managed. We are not afraid of being labeled as 'not team players' (I agree that there are those who are loners and stubbornly independent, but just because one member of the team has a different opinion than the rest does not mean that that person is wrong or not a team player...in fact, it could mean the opposite, that they are more in tune to God's leading than the rest!).

In fact, every time we have a meeting with our leader, either over skype or in person, at the end he lets us know how much he loves working with us! He tells us how he appreciates us and the way our hearts want to serve God and how open and honest we are with him about our ministry. He prays over us and thanks God for the opportunity that he has been given to work with us, as if the privilege is his to work with us, not ours to work under him.

When I hear him say things like that, I can't help but feel uncomfortable and then cry because I'm not used to receiving that kind of affirmation from a leader (I have to admit that I'm so jaded that at times I even wonder if he's being sincere...does he really mean those things or is he just saying that?!).  Because to tell you the truth, we've been in ministry for quite a few years now and I can honestly tell you that no leader has ever said those kinds of words to us before and that is just really, really sad.  Maybe there was a compliment here and there, but nothing on this level. How sad that we can't naturally just take his words at face value...but I think we're becoming confident enough to accept them. 

I think it has something to do with the basic assumptions of leadership in a mission agency (and I speak about mission agencies, because that's my context).  Many agencies seem to have the philosophy of "How can you help us do what we do?", which tends to reduce members more to the level of 'playing pieces' to be moved about the 'game board' at the convenience of leadership. Thus, once the members are no longer considered as useful in a certain position, they might be vulnerable to pressure by leadership to move into a different ministry even though it might not be where they really want to be (being asked by leadership to consider filling this or that position might even be seen as 'the will of God' when leadership has such power over the members). In short, this style of leadership allows for a dangerous level of dysfunction to arise, IMHO and in my personal experience.

In contrast, there are those agencies who have this view, "Where is God leading you and how can we help you get there?" This implies a certain humility by leadership as they view themselves not so much as leaders, but as helpers who come alongside the members to guide them into the place where God is leading. This dynamic tends to create an environment that actually discourages dysfunction on the part of leadership (not that there might not be dysfunction, but it is much less likely to exist simply because of the leadership structure itself).

So, lots of stuff going on in my head regarding leadership as I reflect on past and current experiences and my own leadership style.  Am I trying to exert the wrong kind of influence (control) over those under my leadership (as in, my kids)? Or am I looking to come alongside them to empower, to raise up and release them to God's leading on their lives?

Good question...

Church Meeting

A few weeks ago, my Mom called with the news that she had run into a pastor friend of hers at Walmart.  This pastor is actually the one who baptized my Mom when she was a young teenager...his first pastorate was in the little country church that my Mom's family attended.  Pastor Ed has followed my family's missionary journey and always invited my parents to share at the different churches where they have pastored over the years. 

Pastor Ed has pastored the Spring River Indian Baptist Church for a few years and this church has supported my Mom's ministry during that time.  Now that my Mom is retired, however, they have been wondering where to find another missionary to partner with...my Mom just happened to have a name handy and that is how we came to share about our ministry at the Spring River Indian Baptist Church this last Sunday.

We were given a warm welcome and the entire hour to show pictures and share about our future ministry in Puebla. 

One of the interesting things about this church is their passion for missions...not only do they give to the general mission fund of the IMB, they also desire to partner with and support a missionary family with whom they have a personal relationship!  We could tell they were excited about the possibilities and they did, in fact, vote to take us on as their missionaries.  It was a true blessing for us to have this opportunity to share about our ministry with them and they have already blessed us...we look forward to visiting them again before we leave for Mexico.

Trust: Building Confidence in Relationships**

"The most important step in entering a new culture is to build trust.  Only when people trust us will they listen to what we have to say."  Marvin K. Mayers

"No task is more important in the first years of ministry in a new culture than the building of trusting relationships with the people."  Paul Hiebert

Definition:  Trust is the ability to build confidence in a relationship so that both parties believe the other will not intentionally hurt them but will act in their best interest. 

This chapter in the book explores how we can build trust with the people around us, particularly people who are different from us...in most cultures of the world, trust is like the glue that holds relationships together, the energy that promotes spirited cooperation.  Without trust, relationships do not grow or thrive. 

Ingredients of trust:

1. Trust takes time...trust comes in incremental steps over time.  Through a variety of experiences we develop more comfortable and confident relationship.  This dynamic comes into play as we learn the language of the local people, since learning their language is actually a signal of your desire to know them and to build relationships of trust. 
2. Building trust requires a certain amount of risk, mostly emotional...friendships grow while working through difficulties together and finding resolution...this includes things like clarifying misunderstandings, admitting wrong, apologizing and forgiving...as we deal with issues in a relationship, mutual confidence increases and soon both parties are more confident that the other will not intentionally hurt them. 
3. Trust must be built from the other person's perspective...it is easy to make the mistake of believing that what would build trust with you will also build trust with someone else.  It is important to always ask the question, "What will build trust from _________'s perspective?"  Without taking the other person's point of view into mind, it would be easy for you to become like the monkey who tried to serve the fish by taking it out of the water.  Trust must always be built from the other person's frame of reference.
4. Trust must be nurtured.  Strong confidence in a relationship actually is a portrayal of the Trinity; absolute trust exists between the three distinct persons of the Godhead...the Trinity is a model for marriage, family, church and other relationships...in order to keep trust strong, both parties must regularly ask, "What will build trust with this person (or this group)?" 

God and Trust

• He trusts us.  Trust finds its roots in creation...God created every human being and entrusted us with his own image (Genesis 1:27).  God has given us something that makes us completely and wonderfully distinct from the rest of creation...his image bestows such dignity that we are loved by him above all other parts of creation.  With God's image imprinted on our nature, we have been given the great privilege of choice...the exercise of will...and with this will our Creator allows us to love him with all of our heart, mind and soul, or to despise him and profane him...we are allowed the choice to do good or evil.  God also entrusted us with managing his world (Genesis 1:28-30). 
• God builds trust. 
• The miracles that God performed in the Old Testament...by these displays of power he showed Israel that he, the Lord God, was trustworthy for all aspects of their lives so that they would not place their trust in false gods.  God declared by word and by deed, "Trust me.  I am worthy of your complete, unwavering confidence regardless of your circumstances.  All other gods are untrustworthy...they will betray you, but I will never betray you." 
• The incarnation...God who not visible to the people of the Old Testament, was now made visible in the form of his Son Jesus, who was human (John 1:14, Phil. 2:7)...God built trust with us by sending his only Son to live among us.  And throughout his life, Jesus displayed his power and invited us to trust him with our lives and our eternity.
• Perhaps the greatest act of trust was Jesus giving his life for rebellious humankind...a righteous person giving up life for his enemies (Romans 5:7-8)....in his ascension, Christ entrusts us with his life and mission, in other words, to live out his life in the world...to be his light in the darkness, his mercy to the needy, his justice to the downtrodden, his voice declaring he is "the way and the truth and the life" (Jn 14:6)...in Jesus' own words, "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith (trust) in me will do what I have been doing" (Jn 14:12).
• God forgives our sins...when we repent of our sins and ask God's forgiveness, he promises to forgive us (1 Jn 1:9)...in our repentance, we communicate to God that we have broken trust with him and in his forgiveness, trust is renewed and the relationship is restored.  And as his servants, we are to follow this pattern; forgiving one another when trust has been broken in order to restore relationships.  Living in unforgiveness is to refuse to live like Christ. 
• The resurrection of Christ.  As the disciples faced the confusion of the present and an uncertain future, they found Jesus' words comforting as he says "Trust me all the way to the resurrection."
• Do not let your hearts be troubled.  Trust in God; trust also in me.  In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I am going there to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me. (Jn 14:1-3)

Building Trust Across Cultures

In cross-cultural situations, building trust is even more important but also more difficult for several reasons:

1. Trust is built differently in different cultures...most people don't really think about how they are building trust, it is done rather intuitively.  Some of the things we do in American culture will work in other cultures, such as smiling, phoning, emailing, spending time together and showing interest.  However, other things that build trust in one culture may actually undermine trust in another.  For example, let's say you are in another culture and you agree to meet up with someone at a certain place at a certain time to get to know them better (build trust), but they arrive 30 minutes late.  Lateness for a meeting, even an informal meeting of friends, usually undermines trust for Americans, but not necessarily for people from other cultures.  It might undermine trust for you if a person from another culture began to ask you how much you paid for your shoes, your house, your jewelry or other things...or an American male is pleased with the relationship being built with a man from the local culture, but one day this local friend takes his hand and holds it while walking down the street.  How can you find out what these kinds of things mean in the culture where you are living? 
2. Trust is culturally defined.  Some activities may build trust in both cultures, but it is important not to assume this.  In most cultures being late isn't disrespectful, it is a way of life and most people think nothing of being late...lateness should not be seen as a violation of trust.  In other cultures it is not necessarily wrong to openly discuss money and wealth, people from other cultures are naturally curious about the wealth in the West and want to know more about it.  Handholding, even among males, is in most cases a sign of good friendship, revealing a certain level of trust.  The natural inclination, however, is to interpret these kinds of things from our own cultural frame of reference, but it is vital that we remember that trust-building is culturally defined.  Learn how it is done in the culture you will be entering so that you can accurately interpret the signals that others are sending and so that you will be less likely to offend with your signals. 
3. Trust is fragile.  The author points out that in his younger years, he would not have put trust very high on his priority list, but that experience has changed this perspective.  He points out that he has learned that without trust friendships, families and organizations, including the church, sink into dysfunction.  "Trust is absolutely essential in everything we do...trust in marriage, between friends, at work, in public life...without trust we are doomed to chaos and confusion because nothing can work" (Richard Capen).  In this life, we must connect with each other in order to survive and yet our apparent inability to value cultural and ethnic diversity increases the complexity of building and maintaining trust...and yet God wants that very diversity not only to be respected, but used in such a way that together we work to glorify God and unify around the work of his kingdom..."Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.  There is one body and one Spirit--just as you were called to one hope when you were called--one Lord, one faith, on baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all" (Eph. 4:2).  Trust is fragile and it breaks easily...when immersed in cultural differences, we can break trust without even knowing it...therefore, we must have a strategy for repairing it: forgiveness. 

Forgiveness:  Repairing Broken Trust

Every relationship experiences times of broken trust...sometimes it's minor, such as not arriving on time for a meeting, but sometimes it's major, such as violating marriage vows.  When trust is broken, most people are willing to try to repair it, especially if the relationship is important.  Only one thing can restore broken trust: forgiveness--forgiveness asked for and forgiveness received.

Westerners usually offer and receive forgiveness in a direct manner through a verbal exchange...one party says, "I am sorry for what I did (or said); will you forgive me?" and the other party usually responds with, "I forgive you."  Assuming both parties are sincere, the relationship is then restored and is free to grow again.  Based on Matthew 18:15-17, many Westerners believe that the only way to resolved conflict is accomplished through direct confrontation, face-to-face interchange; that it's verbal, one person telling another what he or she has done wrong. 

The fact is, however, that in most parts of the world seeking forgiveness in the Western way only makes the situation worse because shame, honor and saving face are core values in other cultures and when violated, relationships usually break.  Forgiveness will repair the damage, but it must be contextually understood. 

How trust is built, violated and rebuilt in a given cultural context will vary. Therefore, you will need to discover for yourself what breaks trust and how trust is restored in your particular situation...you will need to learn this from the local people themselves. But, they won't tell you until they feel you are trustworthy! Trust becomes the foundation for deep sharing and mutual learning...out of this we discover how to best serve. In the next post in this series, I will share the author's thoughts on how to pursue such learning. 

Becky's note:  I will not list out the examples of restored trust and forgiveness offered that the author gives, but suffice it to say that the examples given are striking in their difference to the direct ways of conflict resolution that are taught here in the United States.  The lesson I have taken away from this chapter is how vitally important  it is to be intentional about discovering how broken trust is restored in the culture I serve and how the local culture 'do' conflict resolution...how willing I am to discover and use local methods of conflict resolution and trust-building will most likely be a major factor in determining how successful my relationships and ministry will be in another culture.  Not to mention my relationship with my Venezuelan husband! 

A Caution of Trust

Sometimes trust can be misplaced...we simply should not trust someone who is not trustworthy.  Sometimes trusting someone too much too soon is naive and trust should never replace good sense.

To read earlier posts in this series you can go here or here or here....

**Notes for this post taken from the book Cross-Cultural Servanthood: Serving the World in Christlike Humility by Duane Elmer. I highly recommend you get this book, by the way...it might change your life!

Missions Conference

We just got back yesterday from attending a missions conference at my Mom's sending church over in Tulsa. I'd forgotten that my family has such celebrity status over there in that church, we were treated like royalty! We were only going to attend, but they included us as featured missionaries which was rather unexpected. It was good to reconnect with people that know my family and hear from the various other missionaries that attended, including my Mom.  Todd Ahrend from The Traveling Team was the main speaker on Sunday for both services, what an incredible speaker! 


The kids weren't too sure about the conference at first, but they were hooked the first night when some folks from the Voice of the Martyrs spoke and then the kids had the opportunity to try to smuggle Bibles through an elaborate darkened tunnel. The church even provided an EMT to stand by in case any of the kids got too stressed out because apparently it was quite intense! My kids loved it though and then couldn't wait to go back...they weren't disappointed with the other events like learning about other cultures, trying some exotic foods and worshipping God under an Angolan hut.

Miguel and I were asked to teach the 1st and 2nd grade Sunday school class...they weren't sure if they could get a missionary to speak in their class, so they were thrilled to have us there. We requisitioned some of Mom's tribal stuff and Miguel put some pictures together, so we had a decent presentation and wowed them with monkey teeth and Yanomamo arrows (10 feet long) and the blowgun and darts (Miguel shot a picture of a tapir we projected onto the wall). I did the talking and we pretended like Miguel didn't speak English so they had the chance to experience a language barrier. I think it went well and we heard from several parents later how much it had impressed their children.

I had a bit of a cold when we went, but all that talking I did brought about the usual laryngitis I get when I talk too much. I mean, I usually DO talk to much anyway, but I always get laryngitis when I go on translation trips or have to talk constantly like at a conference, etc. Speaking to the kids for 45 minutes on Sunday morning was the final straw and I could barely speak the rest of the day and I had a lot more talking to do!

We stayed with a wonderful couple while we were there, an older couple who spent a few years on the mission field after their retirement.  They loved our kids and have a gift for hospitality.  They have a full basement that we stayed in and we were very comfortable there at their house, which made our time there so much easier.  They even introduced us to their neighbor who is a pastor from Venezuela!  Small world...

Overshadowing this event, however, was the fact that Papa John (my stepdad) had to be admitted to the hospital overnight because he had been having all the symptoms of a heart attack and therefore missed part of the conference.  It turned out not to be a heart attack, although it might be some sort of blockage, but it was a bit alarming and we were faced with Mom and John's mortality once again.  Not something that's all that fun to face, but necessary at their age (Mom turned 65 on Friday).  Papa John has an appointment with his regular doctor today, so we're waiting to see what results that might have. 

So a rather eventful week for us and we're enjoying a day of rest today...I was planning to do school, but that's kind of hard to do without a voice!   The kids aren't too disappointed, though...

Turning Point

Looking back over the last few months, I feel a deep sense of gratefulness at how God works to carry me through hard times...God is good.  We've done a lot of grieving in our time of ministry, come to think of it!  When we went to Venezuela way back when, we were entirely committed to living and working there with NTM for the rest of our lives and well, things didn't work out that way.  We took a huge hit when, barely two years later, we were facing the decision of leaving to go work somewhere else.  We arrived in Mexico hopeful that perhaps God was leading us to stay there, although Miguel still sensed a strong desire to return to his home country, understandable certainly, but was it God's calling or just a human desire?  We weren't certain...and then sure enough, two years into our time in Mexico, there we were, packing up another household of stuff and stepping out in blind faith. 

At the time, I was rather terrified of stepping out like that because it meant facing a future that I wasn't at all sure that I was willing to face, but if I hadn't been able to let go of our ministry in Mexico with NTM, God wouldn't have been able to lead us to the ministry that He has had waiting for us.  It is interesting how God writes our stories, brings opportunities to our door and then allows them to step away for a time if we are not ready to open that door.  He is faithful to work and then bring these opportunities back another time when we're more ready to answer the call.

We have known for years that our sending church has been greatly involved in a church planting partnership with a local church in Puebla, Mexico for several years now...Miguel has, in fact, gone on three different short-term mission trips as a translator to this ministry site, but we hadn't had much thought about it other than acknowledging that it existed.  Three years ago, Miguel brought up the idea of going to live and work there, but since it implied leaving NTM and I was not ready to face that choice yet, we declined that opportunity, stayed with NTM and went to Chihuahua instead. 

When we left Mexico last August, we went through a strong grieving process because not only did we grieve leaving Mexico, which we have come to love, we grieved the loss of friends both in and out of the mission community.  We had many good friends within NTM and had connected so strongly to the community of believers in our local church that it was like leaving family, a truly painful process that was difficult to recover from.  But it was a necessary step as God directed our path and moved us towards His plan.

2010 was an interesting year for us because it marks a turning point, a time of real growth and change in Miguel and I, both personally and in our ministry.  In many ways, I think we finally 'grew up', if you will, emotionally as we began dealing with some deep hurts of our past and in our marriage.  And this healing seemed to open the door to some true growth in our ministry and we found ourselves disatisfied with the 'status quo' of the mission world we found ourselves in and yet not really sure we were able to make a decision that would mean some radical change.  God used those experiences to sharpen our vision for ministry, define how we desire to work and to help us know what to look for in our next ministry. 

And then something pretty amazing happened and God showed us very clearly that our time with NTM had come to its end.  It was a painful process, weaning always has its moments of distress as we break some of the strings of dependency that might have formed with such a partnership.  A friend describes the relationship between a mission agency and its members as a 'marriage' and he noted that when that relationship breaks down, it can be compared to a 'divorce'.  Such a 'divorce' between an agency and a member can produce some pretty strong emotions and feelings of loss and grief and abandonment, true, but sometimes is necessary as the member seeks to follow God's plan for their lives.  We learned that our identity needs to be solidly placed in Christ and not in a membership in a mission agency or church or in anything other than Christ, really.  And we have certainly learned that God is sufficient for us at all times and in every circumstance.  All in all, I think we're handling things pretty well, even though we have had some ugly moments in the middle of it...we are very thankful for having had this place of rest and retreat and are thankful that God knows what we need even when we don't have a clue. 

As we contemplated our resignation from NTM, however, we weren't really sure where God was leading even though Miguel still had a strong desire to return either to Venezuela or the Amazon region.  So we explored some of those ideas and continued to pray and ask for wisdom.  And then our home church brought back the Puebla ministry to our attention again and I remembered something...I remembered that back in July when Miguel had last gone to Puebla, he came back energized and excited and interested and I had wondered at that point whether God was leading in that direction.  I remembered having privately surrendered to God in that moment...having said to God "I'll go!" if he asked us to go.  And isn't that where God wants us anyway?  Willing and surrendered? 

Miguel wasn't visibly responding as quickly as I was, though, so I stayed quiet, watching and waiting and praying and resting in God's will.  Besides, I wasn't at all sure that God was leading us to Puebla, it could have just been me and I didn't want to influence Miguel's decision, I wanted God to confirm this in a big way for both of us.  And I'm learning that my husband doesn't make decisions as quickly as I do, he likes to take time to think these important things through rather thoroughly before committing, but soon enough, there we were, entirely in agreement and with a peace about pursuing this ministry.  I was a little surprised because I knew that Miguel is still so attracted to hot and humid tropical places with rivers and fish and outboard motors, and yet he, too, is willing and surrendered to God's will. 

So here we are, preparing to return to Mexico sometime in the next few months, so excited we can hardly stand it!  In fact, if it weren't for some boring details such as joining another mission agency (NTM doesn't work in this area) and raising more prayer and financial support, we'd be leaving, like, tomorrow!  We feel so blessed at how God has been so faithful to work in us and through us and we can't wait to serve Him back.  We find in interesting how God has brought us full circle back to Mexico, a country we both love.  Our new place of ministry is not very tropical, being in the mountains of Puebla with a cool, temperate climate and really no navigable rivers to speak of...but it IS green and humid! 

So here's the scoop...there is a church in the city of Puebla called El Camino Bible Church that wants to plant churches.  They are ambitious, they desire to have a church planting ministry in every state of Mexico!  Anyway, a few years ago, they were able to send a missionary couple from their church up to the mountains of the state of Puebla (about four hours northeast of the city of Puebla) to live and work in a small, remote community with the intention of starting a church planting movement among the Totonac people group. 

Our sending church has come alongside El Camino to help and facilitate in any way that El Camino feels they need help and it's been neat to see our sending church take a helping role and not a leading role in this partnership.  Our sending church sends teams down to Puebla three times a year to help with community outreaches, medical outreaches, children's ministries and construction projects.

Totonac man in traditional dress

The Totonacs are an ancient people group who co-existed alongside the Mayans and the Aztecs.  They have their own language that is not related to other language groups in the area.  They were actually enemies of the Aztecs and joined Hernan Cortés in the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs back in the 1500s.  The Totonacs were incorporated into the Spanish regime, but since they traditionally lived in remote mountainous regions, they have maintained a lot of their traditional customs and culture.  There are roughly 200,000 or more Totonac people in this region with several dialects.  Along with many other indigenous groups in the Americas, they have adopted folk-Catholic religious beliefs while retaining animistic beliefs alongside.  There are very few evangelical churches or believers among the Totonac.

Totonac women in traditional dress



Franco and Barbara, missionaries to the Totonac, have had a successful ministry and now have several believers who are even beginning to teach their own people.  They do work in Spanish with bilingual men, who teach their own people using a New Testament that was translated by Wycliffe years ago.  There is a church building in the town where Franco and Barbara live, but they are seeing that churches could be planted in other towns and that the believers need more discipling.  Franco and Barbara are also getting up in years and are thinking about retiring in a couple of years and they are naturally concerned about continuing the work. 

And that's where we come in...this is exactly what we've been trained for, cross-cultural tribal church planting!  And Miguel's gifts lie in teaching and discipling, as well as in community development.  We are also good language learners and I suspect that we'll be moving beyond working in Spanish to learning and working in the Totonac language eventually.  Miguel has already seen and experienced the work first hand and is well-liked and respected there, not just by Franco and Barbara, but also by the tribal people and El Camino.  Our sending church and we, too, think it's a good 'fit' for us and we're pretty excited about getting there and getting to work! 

L-R: Miguel, Hiram (pastor of El Camino),

Franco (missionary to Totonac in Puebla)

and Jordan (Missions admin. assistant

from our sending church here in AR)

There is so much more I could write about this ministry and the Totonac, but this is getting long, so I'll save it for upcoming posts.  I will write some of our objectives for the next few months, though, things we need to do and accomplish...

1. Join a mission agency...we have it narrowed down to two and are applying to both, waiting for God's direction there...
2. Raise needed prayer and financial support...we already have a pretty good base of support in both areas, but are just working to expand it...
3. Obtain a vehicle, preferably some sort of SUV that can handle mountain roads, but isn't so new or nice as to call a lot of attention to it.
4. We're praying about possibly fitting in a visit to Venezuela this year, but not sure that's going to happen...
5. Spend time in Puebla getting to know El Camino and allowing them to get to know their new missionaries.
6. Find a place to live in the mountains...we will most likely be living in a small town close to Franco and Barbara.

Small town in the mountains

There are still some unknowns and a lot of questions to answer, but we'll get there and God will provide.  The important thing is that we're on the move and have a goal that we're working towards...in a sense it is a dream come true, an answer to something we've prayed about for a very long time! 

So thanks for being excited with us!  And plan on coming to visit us soon!

The Brickyard-La Ladrillera

A couple of weeks ago, I went out to the Brickyard, or the Ladrillera, with Allyson and Denesia, two of the missionary ladies that work out there. The Brickyard is a community of workers, mostly Tarahumara Indians, that make and sell bricks that are used in construction all over the city. It is back-breaking work and the families barely scrape a living out of making bricks. There are several missionaries from at least two different organizations that work with the folks at the Brickyard with community development projects as well as teaching the Bible. This was my first time visiting the Brickyard as Allyson had invited me to go out and teach some of the ladies how to make the little craft boxes. Many of the ladies at the Brickyard make jewelry, baskets, and other items to sell. I don't have any pictures of the box-making project, but found a few other pictures...

The finished product...

Loading up the bricks...

Girls in traditional Tarahumara dress...

Harsh living conditions and yet the children
still smile like children everywhere...

memories

There is a small airport near the house where we are living at the moment and the sound of small airplanes landing and taking off is bringing back a lot of memories! Here is a picture of my sister and I getting ready to fly back to school on the mission plane.

Besides the radio, the airplane was pretty much our only link to the outside world! Usually the first thing to be unloaded was the mail bag, which we would quickly take to the house and look through to see the mail. Personal letters from the U.S. and notes from other missionaries were so encouraging to us way out there in the boonies!