LIFE INDEED

Will you marry me . . .

2011-01-02T21:14:00.003Z

It was a cold day in January (the 31st) when I convinced Lindsey to go outside (we were at my parent's house) and take some pictures of the snow-covered scenery with me.

After taking some photos, I slyly led her to their gazebo where I had a present waiting for her. I told her it was a gift to celebrate out 5 month anniversary of dating. It was a little scrapbook I made of our dating experiences up until then.

At the end of the book was a little flap which, when opened, revealed her engagement ring. I got on my knees and proposed.

She said "yes." The rest has been bliss. Well . . . mostly.

Engagement days

2011-01-02T20:56:00.003Z

We painted some pottery at one of those pottery painting places.

Lindsey took silly "photobooth" photos at our friends' David and Kelly's wedding.

We enjoyed a visit from one of Lindsey's best friends, Jennifer Peedin.

Picnic with nutella. Mmm . . .

Some flowers I bought Lindsey at a farmer's market in Cincinnati.

Swingin' in Cinci.

The ladies of Hardinsburg Baptist threw us a wedding shower.

Hangin' with some past HOPE team members at Thurder Over Louisville.

Lindsey and I later watched the fireworks from the roof of Jeff St.

Bachelors' party

2011-01-02T20:27:00.005Z

These guys took part in that manly tradition which is called a bachelors' party. We did some hiking, climbing, and repelling at Red River Gorge.

We had planned to go camping, but severe storms led us to stay the night in a cabin instead.

Matt Smith (in the rear) was kind enough to let us all use his repelling gear.

That first step over the edge is the hardest part.

View from below.

Josh Thomas doing his thing.

Rock stars . . . get it? Will Jenks on the air guitar.

Those crazy guys, Josh and Matt, convinced some of us to go face first (they call it Aussie style).

Will Jenks.

I got married!

2011-01-01T22:12:00.004Z

May 29th, 2010 was a heavenly day. The day I finally got married to my lovely bride, Lindsey. An amazingly hospitable family who we barely knew allowed us to use their beautiful home and yard for the wedding. They had five great kids and thus . . . a zip line which the guys and I enjoyed.

The kids also had a lot of toys that made for this interesting photo. All photos were made by the world's best wedding photographer (and my good friend) David Michael Webb.

The family had goats, giant dogs, and chickens which made their presence known at times.

Here come the bride . . . with her dad.

One of the few things Lindsey really wanted was to get married under a tree. So we did.

Our first kiss . . . as husband and wife.

You'd be happy too . . . if you'd just married me.

Lindsey went barefoot during the wedding, and after. She's got pretty feet.

What can I say?

The first dance.

Dancing with my sweet mother.

My grandma and Lindsey's mom enjoying themselves. Lindsey and friends painted fleur de lis on wine bottles as decorative flower vases.

The beginning of the rest of our lives together.

Honeymoon in California

2011-01-01T02:22:00.003Z

This is beautiful Lake Tahoe, the first stage of our honeymoon.

We got to do a little kayaking on the lake.

Lindsey checking out some cool clouds moving over the lake.

A picture of Lindsey taking a picture of the mountains around Lake Tahoe.

Aww . . .

From Lake Tahoe, we headed south to Yosemite National Park. I love this view of Yosemite Valley. El Capitan is on the left edge and Half Dome is sort of the distant center mountain.

One of many waterfalls in Yosemite. They claim to have the greatest concentration of waterfalls in the world (or something like that).

The giant sequoias are also in Yosemite.

I like to climb.

From Yosemite we drove to the coast and then up Highway 1 (a view from the road here) to San Francisco.

San Fran. The Golden Gate Bridge. We rented bikes and rode across it and back.

Other weddings of note

2011-01-01T02:05:00.004Z

A couple weeks after Lindsey and I were lawfully wedded, my cousin Corey married his bride, Sarah.

Their receiving line at Harned Methodist church.

A couple weeks after that my good friend (and our wonderful wedding photographer) David Michael Webb got married as well. This might have been the hottest day of a very hot summer. Poor guys.

I got to witness a strange pre-wedding ritual they have in Southern Illinois. The night before the wedding it is obligatory to throw the groom in a lake. (Not a good picture - but that's what happened)

We had a good time over late night milkshakes the night before the wedding. That's a bunch of good guys right there.

Summertime

2011-01-01T01:42:00.005Z

Lindsey and I went canoeing on the Blue River (Indiana) with some friends from Sojourn (our church).

Jesse and Lindsey Eubanks about to crash into the Roths.

We went home to celebrate my birthday (July 14th) with my family. This is probably the only photo I have of my mother doing anything remotely athletic.

While we were home we stopped in on my brother and sister-in-law building their new house in Locust Hill. It's nearly finished now.

We also celebrated my birthday with a few friends in Louisville. Lindsey baked me this cake.

We visited Frankfort (our state capitol) with my good friends Joe and Linda Dewees.

Went to a little 4th of July cookout with some friends/neighbors from our community group.

Lindsey and I went swimming at Deam Lake (Indiana).

Lindsey "picking" blueberries, also in Indiana.

The farmhouse

2010-12-31T01:01:00.003Z

Lindsey's grandparents have a farmhouse in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. We made the trip there in late summer to visit with her family and had a great time.

Lindsey's papaw Albertson took us on a tour of the farm in a wagon pulled by his trusty tractor. The mountain in the distance is called Buffalo Mountain.

This is the attic at the farmhouse. Her grandparents are known for not throwing anything away. We found some interesting stuff up there.

The farmhouse is also said to look about like it did 30 or so years ago. There's lots of old stuff there, like this stove.

Hangin' out on the gazebo.

Besides the farmhouse, they also built this cabin on the property. We didn't stay there as it doesn't have electricity, running water, or any of the conveniences of the farmhouse, but it's still pretty neat.

Among the old stuff at the farmhouse are lots of old hats and some glasses. Lindsey and I are modeling some of them here.

We took a little drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway and then hiked a bit.

And had a picnic.

The nearby town of Floyd, VA is known for their weekly jamboree on Friday nights. On one little street, there were around 10 different groups of bluegrass musicians pickin' away.

Mabry Mill is one of the interesting attractions along the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Fall fun

2010-12-31T00:36:00.003Z

We went to the Gaslight Festival in J-town and I wasn't that impressed (like an overgrown Hoedown Day for you Breck Countians). But the "balloon glow" was pretty cool.

My car got rear-ended by a parked van which was struck by a speeding car in late September. Took until Thanksgiving to get it repaired. My parents were very kind to loan us a vehicle while it was being worked on.

Went to pick pumpkins with our friends Jeremiah and Lauren at Huber's Farm in Indiana.

Carved our pumpkins with our friends Cameron and Cara.

Thanksgiving at the Spencers'

2010-12-31T00:14:00.002Z

Cousin Chad, sister-in-law Becky, and brother Kyle at the bar. Grown-ups at the grown-up table behind them.

My mom cutting the pumpkin pie. I hate pumpkin pie. Fortunately there's lots of other goodies to be had.

My Mattingly grandparents at the dinner table.

Grandpa Spencer.

My grandmothers.

Christmas . . .

2010-12-30T23:53:00.005Z

. . . at the Albertsons' in North Carolina. We went down to celebrate with them the week before Christmas. This year I made the annual Albertson family Christmas photo.
It is one of Lindsey and her sister Stacy's traditions to rearrange their grandparents' NOEL letters to spell LEON.
. . . at the Spencers'. Grazing around the desserts.
My brother, mom, and grandpa opening gifts.
When do you outgrow stockings?

What's next?

2009-08-09T02:24:00.000Z

I’m 31. If I were born in sub-saharan Africa I’d be well past my mid-life crisis. Fortunately, here in America I’m still considered relatively young by most. However, by HOPE team standards, I’m ancient. I’m a whole decade older than about half our team. I’m half a decade older than our next oldest team member. Heck, I’m older than my HOPE director, who graciously broke his own requirements by allowing me to do the program. Hopies are supposed to be between ages 18 and 29. I’m glad to be the exception.

The majority of my teammates have known from the beginning that they would go back to college after the summer. A few of have had to make more difficult decisions about what’s next. That’s probably been the most frequently asked (and most dreaded) question directed toward me in recent days: “What’s next?” That’s to be expected as I am 31 and have been zigzagging across a peculiar career path for the past decade.

Well, I’d tossed around a lot of ideas: going back overseas, staying on at Jeff. St., getting a “real job” for a while, pursuing that career as a circus performer that so many have suggested. But all these ideas lost out, for the present time anyway. So, to answer the question, I’m going back to school. On August 18th, I’ll start taking some prerequisites at Jefferson Community and Technical College (JCTC) here in Louisville. Eventually I hope to get into nursing or some other medical profession. I can visualize many of you with your jaws on the ground at this point.

Well this is not as out of nowhere as it may seem. Way back during my most recent term in West Africa (2006-2008), I began to notice and respect the medical professionals who would come to use their healing and caring skills to serve others and serve the Lord. I visited our Baptist hospital in Nalerigu, Ghana and was overwhelmed with admiration for the services and ministries they provided there. I recall having the “crazy thought” of going back to school to acquire some of those medical skills. Since then that has been a recurring idea of mine. The main thing that has held me back is the idea of having to give up at least two or three years to get the necessary training. That’s not a big deal when you’re 21. But 31? Well, General Douglas MacArthur said, “Youth is not a period of time. It is a state of mind, a result of the will, a quality of the imagination, a victory of courage over timidity, of the taste for adventure over the love of comfort.” I love that. I want to live it.

So now is the time. I’m going back to school. Whatever degree I wind up with, I know I want to use those skills to care for people’s bodies and share with them the Remedy for their soul’s sickness as well.

August Newsletter (the end)

2009-08-02T19:22:00.001Z

Greetings friends and family!

August? Already? Sure enough. That means the end of my HOPE term here at Jefferson Street Baptist Center. So, of course, I’ve been reflecting a lot on the past months of work, service, and life in a homeless shelter. Unfortunately, summing up the past 11 months in a short newsletter is nearly impossible (but I’ll do what I can). There have been some great times and some tough times, but through it all, God has been awesome.

The Lord has done a great work in my heart. He has taught me many valuable lessons about homelessness, addictions, mental illness, relationships, servanthood, and myself. I’ve also been used by God, despite my inadequacies. There were times when the Lord orchestrated amazingly perfect opportunities to minister his truth. Other times He allowed me to minister profoundly through a simple word or gesture. Besides, working in and through me, I’ve also seen the Lord move in the lives of some of the folks we are ministering to. I’ve been blessed to see great change in some of our residents. I’ve even seen a few of them move out and move on to successful lives.

These are the parts of life we enjoy thinking about and sharing with others in conversations and blogs. But there is another side of life which is not always sunshine and rainbows. This darker side of life is just as real and often just as common, whether we like to admit it or not. Yet I’ve found that even in this more grueling side of life, God is still awesome. In fact, some of the most amazing aspects of God’s “Godness” are only seen when He is helping us through adversity and trials.

For example, in our anxiety, we find that God is faithful. In our uncertainty, we find that God is wise. In our fear, we find that God is a refuge. In our despair, we find that God is a comforter. In our disappointment, we find that God is sovereign. In our weakness, we find that God is strong. In our failures, we find that God is merciful.

Over the past months, I’ve experienced all these realities. I’ve been a mess and a failure in many ways. Yet at all times, God has been lovingly heroic. When it’s all said and done, my experience here at Jeff. Street will not be about me and what I’ve done, but about what the Lord has done. He has done great things, in both good times and bad.

I will truly be sad to move out of Jeff. Street on August 14th. I will miss many things about this place. First and foremost, I’ll miss a lot of wonderful people: my teammates, the staff, our neighbors – the residents, and the Day Shelter guests. I’ll also miss the morning commute: down two flights of stairs. I’ll miss sharing meals with the residents and my teammates. I’ll miss being forced, daily, to minister to “the least of these.” I’ll miss starting work at 6:30 AM (well . . . maybe not). I’ll miss the HOPE team’s weekly “Prayer and Share.” I’ll miss going with our residents to museums, baseball games, and the bowling alley. I’ll miss all this and much more.

Fortunately, I won’t miss Louisville because I’m sticking around for a while. (Stay tuned for the upcoming “what’s next” blog.) As a result, I look forward to visiting and volunteering at Jeff. Street as long as I’m still in town. I truly love this place and all the folks involved.

I hope that you will not forget about Jeff. Street after my departure. I mentioned it briefly in my last newsletter, but I want to encourage you again to continue being a blessing to the homeless by donating to Jefferson Street Baptist Center. Currently, Jeff. Street is experiencing some financial strain because we recently decided to stop accepting government funding because it would not allow us to minister in the most faithful way. We fully expect the Lord to provide for this ministry through His church. To learn more about donating (goods, food, or money) to Jeff. Street, you can visit www.jeffersonstreet.org and click on the “Donate Now” tab. To begin receiving the insightful and informational Jeff. Street newsletter, just send an email to info@jeffersonstreet.org or go to our website.

One last time, thank you so much for your prayer support and/or financial support throughout my days here at Jeff. Street. It’s been a great blessing to have never been concerned about money while serving here. I’ve also felt truly loved by the assurance of your prayers. Thank you and may the Lord bless you for the role you’ve played in our serving “the least of these.”

To Donate to JSBC | Send your tax-deductible donation to
Jefferson Street Baptist Center | 733 East Jefferson St | Louisville, KY 40202
Visit the HOPE website at www.hopeforlouisville.com
Visit our online journal at www.hopeblog.wordpress.com
Visit Jeff. Street’s site at www.jeffersonsonstreet.org

Dangerous?

2009-07-21T02:09:00.000Z

We HOPE guys were walking downtown one evening when we ran into one of our regular Day Shelter guests, Eddie. As we walked up to greet him, it became clear that he had been badly beaten up. He had a bandaged-up, bloodied eye and scrapes on both arms. He told us his ribs were sore too. A gang of young guys had jumped him and taken all he had: $2 and a cell phone. I was saddened to see Eddie’s scars but maybe more upset by his bruised spirit.

I remember watching the HOPE video before coming here. It began with some homeless folks holding up cardboard signs with words describing homelessness: exhausting, embarrassing, miserable, etc. One of the words stuck out to me though: dangerous. I didn’t really get it at first. Now I get it. Over the months here at Jeff. St., I’ve heard of frequent muggings, people getting hit by cars, tents being burned down, guys getting violent at their campsites after having too much alcohol, and more. This is not to mention the health problems that come from overexertion, neglect, and exposure to the elements.

All the more reasons why the homeless, as well as the rest of us, need to find refuge in the Prince of Peace and the God of all comfort. All the more reasons why the people of God need to be ministering to the homeless.

Dreams

2009-07-12T02:44:00.001Z

I had dinner tonight with several of my teammates and a few of their friends who I just met today. These are college kids so much of the discussion was about “what are you studying?” and “what do you hope to do after school?” It’s always fun to hear the diversity in people’s interests and dreams. Unfortunately, dreams don’t always come true.

I sometimes think about our homeless guests; what were their dreams? I’ve never heard of anyone dreaming of being homeless or going to jail or gaining an addiction. These things come by an assortment of bad decisions and bad circumstances, which literally could befall any of us. This is the fallen world in which we live.

Sadly, it seems the further down people fall, the smaller their dreams become. It becomes a dream just to get their own apartment. Just to get back in the workforce. Just to be reunited with family. We all want a place to call our own. We all want a purpose to fulfill. We all want to have peace within our family. We see these as the basics. It is sad when they become dreams.

Even if we have unfulfilled dreams, if we have these essentials, we should be extremely grateful. God has been good to us. The ability to chase our higher dreams is just an added blessing.

Fortunately, beyond all of this, there remains the hope of a place where “there is no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:4). This is the hope of the Gospel. This hope exceeds our wildest dreams.

July HOPE Newsletter

2009-07-05T15:44:00.003Z

Greetings friends and family!

Occasionally I still stop and think about the fact that I live in a homeless shelter. It’s weird because it’s not weird anymore. I remember about a year ago when I was mulling over the decision to come here. At that time, I could have listed numerous reasons why it would be weird to live in a homeless shelter. And I guess in comparison to some people’s lives, my shelter-dwelling lifestyle is abnormal. But who says being abnormal is a bad thing?

When I made the peculiar decision to move here last summer, it was largely because I knew I wanted and needed to love the poor and needy. The Lord has placed that desire in my heart (and in His word). But I have learned from experience that I’m not very good at demonstrating my love to the poor from a distance. I’m far too easily distracted and not nearly passionate enough. But I didn’t want to be one of those people Mother Teresa was thinking about when she said, “It is very fashionable to talk about the poor. Unfortunately, it is not so fashionable to talk to the poor.”

Recently we HOPE guys were talking with one of our staff members who is the head of one of our resident programs. He told us that, in his opinion, just being here is the best thing we do. He told us how some of the residents talk about us behind our backs (mostly in complementary ways). One guy, he says, is still trying to figure us out: “What are these guys doing here? Bunch of morons.” He’s not a believer and he finds it ridiculous that young guys would stop their education, give up their summer, or in my case, give up unemployment to come live and work at a homeless shelter for very little pay. According to this staff member, this is that particular resident’s way of paying us a compliment. So apparently our mere presence is a witness to our residents.

Pridefully, I’d like to think I’ve done something better than just “being here.” I’d rather be considered a bold evangelist or a humble servant. But when I think about it, it makes a lot of sense. It is often by just being somewhere, “at the right place at the right time” as we say, that we have the greatest impact.

Just by being here, I get to listen to, council, and pray with residents who knock on our apartment door to share about struggles they’re going through. Just by being here, I get to help guys with small tasks and errands they might struggle to accomplish on their own. Just by being here, I’m able to befriend some people who are considered outcasts by society. Just by being here, I’m able to learn a lot of the names of people who are usually overlooked and passed by on the streets. I could go on.

Now, all this is not meant to guilt you into uprooting and moving into the poorest community you can find. That’s not my point. The challenge is, as martyred missionary Jim Elliott said, “Wherever you are – be all there.” Whoever your neighbors are, be determined to love them practically, not just in theory.

When we look at the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10), we see that Jesus defines our “neighbor” as the people we stumble upon as we stroll through life. In this story, we do NOT see love defined as a warm, fuzzy emotion. Instead, love is an inconvenient, messy, sacrificial, hands-on undertaking.

Ultimately, Jesus, not the Good Samaritan, is our example in how to show love. After all, He inconveniently came an infinite distance to get messy and to sacrifice His life out of His great love for us. “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers” (1 John 3:16). Are we going to follow Jesus’ example or not?

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* Please pray for my teammates and me to finish strong as we complete our term in mid-August.
* Please pray that the Lord will bring fruit from the seeds that we’re planting.
* Please pray for God’s direction as to what He has for me next.

Thanks again for your prayers and support. God bless!

Do not sound a trumpet

2009-07-02T13:43:00.000Z

It’s difficult to live your life for Jesus. To REALLY live for Jesus is complicated. I say that because it’s about more than just our words and actions. Living for Christ is about our heart. And matters of the heart are complex.

A good friend was recently confessing their pridefulness is certain areas. Pride is a matter of the heart. My friend was telling me about how they sometimes do good things for bad reason, prideful reasons. Their confession got me thinking about my own pride.

In Matthew 6:1-4, we read Jesus’ words: “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”

Thus to truly follow Christ, we not only have to do the right things, but we have to do them for the right reasons. Above all, we have to do good deeds for the Lord - not for ourselves, not for others. Instead of trying to impress others or make ourselves feel good, our motive must be to please and honor the Lord in our actions. Our heart must be right before Him. Thank goodness that the Lord has given us a new heart. Otherwise, our task would be impossible. As it is, it’s just really difficult. Lord help us.

Coffee with Ernest

2009-06-26T01:13:00.001Z

Ernest is my atheist, homeless friend who I have almost nothing in common with (see my March newsletter for more on Ernest). I’ve often wondered why and how we are friends, but we are. We went for coffee again today and Ernest commented that this is the first time he’s been sober while we were hanging out. It showed.

Instead of ranting about science and the Bible as usual, Ernest was genuinely seeking advice and encouragement as to what he needed to do to pick his life up from the gutter. We discussed his options for getting a phone, a job, and a place to stay. We lined out a simple plan that he wants me to hold him accountable to. We also discussed his obvious need to stay away from the bottle.

Ernest is still not interested in my prayers (“a lot of good they’ll do me” – he said) or my advice about his relationship with God (although he did take the book, “The Reason for God,” that I loaned him). Yet it is encouraging that he is seeking to get his life back on track, at least in the physical realm. I’m blessed to be Ernest’s friend and to have the opportunity to encourage him in that pursuit. And whether he likes it or not, I do pray that Ernest will truly find an abundant life, both physically and spiritually.

A new HOPE

2009-06-18T01:53:00.000Z

Matt, Lindsey, and I are the year-term “Hopies” (as our director Jesse calls us). A few weeks ago, we added nine new summer-term Hopies. If you’re not familiar with the inner workings of Jeff. Street, it may be hard for you to comprehend what a huge shock to the system this is. We have a total of six full-time staff and a handful of 2nd and 3rd shift guys. Thus, the HOPE team (12 of us in all) is now a larger group than all of Jeff. Street’s regular staff combined. That’s pretty exciting. But it’s also been a bit overwhelming.

Over the past nine months, Matt, Lindsey, and I became well established in our roles and routines. We also became very close as a team. The addition of nine new teammates has meant the end of HOPE as we knew it. We now have new roles: Lindsey and I are the women’s and men’s team leaders respectively. We also have new routines, as many of the things we once did as a group of three amigos are now broken into men’s and women’s team activities. Much of the “grunt” work I am used to has been deligated to the newcomers as I am given more supervisory and administrative roles. My average day or week today looks drastically different when compared to just a month ago. All this has taken some getting used to . . . but it’s all worth it.

It is exciting that such a large group (the largest HOPE team yet) of young Christians has given up their summer to serve the homeless and urban poor. Their presence and energy is allowing us to do things we’ve never done before. We have more hands than necessary to keep up with the necessary workload. This means we are freed up to start new projects and to socialize with our homeless guests and residents like never before. In many ways, I see this as a picture of the body of Christ at work (as described in 1 Corinthians 12 and elsewhere). Besides their sheer numbers, the new team has brought additional gifts and abilities that we’ve been lacking. Even more, the summer team has brought a refreshing passion and vigor that is easy to lose through months of service. As a result, our potential and ability as a body has increased. I’m very thankful for all my HOPE teammates, new and old. They are a blessing to both the ministry of Jeff Street and to my life as well.

June HOPE Newsletter

2009-06-01T00:00:00.003Z

Greetings friends and family!

Word on the street is that Louisville is a good place to be homeless. Of course, no one would claim that it is easy or pleasant to be homeless. But if you happen to be homeless, Louisville is a pretty good place to be. That’s because compared to many cities there is an abundance of large shelters and organizations that provide food, clothes, shelter, etc.

Recently while working in the Day Shelter storage closet, I had a long conversation with Andre, a well-traveled homeless guy. He was telling me about Miami, Philly, and some other cities he’s lived in. He says the desperate condition of the homeless populations there and the lack of aid in those cities makes Louisville look like “paradise.” I guess some things are relative.

Yesterday, we went to throw Frisbee in a park and ran into one of our best homeless buddies, Pete. Somehow we got on the topic of food. He began listing the times and places that the homeless can get meals in town. It is actually possible to get six free meals on some days, if you’re willing to do the traveling. Thus they say that if you go hungry in Louisville, you’re just plain lazy. (This is one good reason why it’s generally not wise to give money to panhandlers who claim that they are hungry.)

The fact that Louisville has a lot of services for the homeless is a good thing . . . for the most part. The downside is that because homelessness is made more tolerable here, some folks are satisfied to accept free handouts rather than try to work for a living. This is why some who care about helping the poor have coined the phrase, “the help that hurts.” Meaning: there is a type of aid that actually worsens the condition of the recipients.

So what are we to do? As Christians, the Bible instructs us over and over to help and to give to the poor and needy. Just a few examples: “You shall freely open your hand to your brother, to your needy and poor in your land” (Deut. 15:11). But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? (1 John 3:17) Jesus Himself said, “when you give to the poor . . .” (Matt. 6:2) He didn’t say “if” but “when,” showing that giving to the poor is expected.

So giving to the poor is a Christian obligation. But the “how” and “when” of the giving are not clearly prescribed. The Bible also makes a case for conditional giving. Paul puts numerous conditions on the giving to widows in 1 Timothy 5:3-10. He also give us this principle, “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat” (2 Thess. 3:10). So there is a need for wisdom and discernment when trying to help the poor. That’s the tricky part. Robert Lupton, an urban ministry veteran says, “It is a long journey from softhearted, one-way charity to reciprocal, interdependent relationships. The road map that shows us how to navigate our way from prideless dependency systems to dignity-enhancing systems of exchange is not yet charted.”

Thus, we at Jeff. St. are trying to find better and better ways to serve and give to the poor and needy. This is truly a difficult undertaking. Yet we must remember that we can do all things with the Lord’s help. Ultimately, our goal is not to make Louisville or Jeff. St. into “paradise,” but to show our homeless friends the paradise that is eternity with the Lord.

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Our Summer HOPE Team has arrived – all NINE of them! It’s hard to understate how big of a change this will make to our lives, work, and ministry, but that’s a good thing. These new recruits will allow us to do things we’ve never been able to do before. Besides that, they’re a lot of fun. I’m very excited to see what the summer brings for us here at Jeff. St.

• Please pray that the Lord will work in and through the Summer HOPE Team as we serve and minister together.
• Please for the staff at Jeff. St.: that we will seek and follow the Lord’s guidance as to how we are to best share His love and His truth with the homeless.
• Please pray for our homeless friends to strive hard after the life the Lord has for them.

As always, I so appreciate your prayers and support. Blessings!

Sincere doubt

2009-05-16T01:58:00.001Z

Ed and I have been doing a weekly Bible study together for months. We have had a number of great talks about his life, his family, his faith and his doubts. Recently we were discussing heaven and Ed made the comment, “It’s a beautiful thing when you know you’re invited.” So I asked him if he believes that he is invited. Ed told me he’s not sure, but he doubts it.

Ed is very aware of his sin. He is also very familiar with the Bible. He takes very seriously the passages about good trees bearing good fruit. When he honestly examines his life, he doesn’t see much good fruit, so he doubts his salvation. Rightly so I suppose.

I admire Ed for his genuineness. He walks to the beat of a different drummer in our culture which is quick to dismiss sin and proclaim that we’re all good people bound for heaven. Some refer to this attitude as “easy believism” or “cheap grace.” Just believe in “God” (whatever “God” you chose) and He’ll forgive you, no matter what.

However, there is another extreme, which Ed flirts with. This extreme believes that we are too wretched and God’s grace is inadequate for us to be made right with Him. “How could God love me?,” it asks. Indeed, it should be difficult for us to grasp and comprehend this truth. This is a great mystery. This is the Gospel.

Tim Keller says, “In the gospel we discover that we are far more wicked than we ever dared believe, yet more loved than we ever dared hope.” I appreciate that Ed admits his own wickedness. I pray that Ed will soon embrace God’s love and give his live to Him completely.

May HOPE Newsletter

2009-05-06T02:08:00.000Z

Greetings friends and family!

Homosexuality and abortion. It is one thing to debate these issues in schools, churches, and the political arena. It is a whole different matter to discuss these issues personally with the people who actually count these as their personal experiences. To them these are not simply “issues,” they are reality. And we must treat these people not just as statistics and oddities but as precious souls created by God.

Caren is a middle-aged, former drug-addict who is one of our regular 8am Bible study attendees. Recently after I finished teaching, she asked to talk to me. Caren shared with me the guilt that she carries with her over the three abortions she has gone though. She told me she realizes she has sinned in many ways, but the guilt over the abortions is especially burdensome. I tried to comfort her with the Gospel and tell her that Jesus calls for those who are “weary and heavy-laden” to come to Him and have rest. She seems to doubt that it could be that easy. She is still wrestling with the feeling that not even God’s grace is great enough to atone for what she has done.

Corey has recently moved into our transitional program. He is the first person I’ve met who has shared the fact that he is both an unashamed homosexual and a professing believer in Jesus Christ. He tells us that he knows that God created him as a homosexual. He has examined all the Scriptures relating to homosexuality and still doesn’t see anything wrong with his sexuality. I totally disagree with him on the immorality of homosexuality. Yet I’m also coming to understand that everyone’s sexuality is severely messed up, no matter how we try to hide it. We all need support and encouragement to fight against our sexual struggles. Sadly, it seems that all Corey has received from the church is contempt and rejection. I am ashamed to say it, but I’m also having to fight my tendency to either smack him over the head with the scriptures or avoid him altogether.

Clearly, abortion and homosexuality are two of the hot-button issues of our time. I have to imagine that if Jesus were still walking around in the flesh, He would not just be in the middle of the debate, but in the middle of homosexuals and those who abort babies. The Pharisees rightly accused him of being a friend of “tax collectors and sinners” (Matt. 11:19). They made this accusation as if it were a bad thing. Apparently, the Pharisees failed to acknowledge the fact that they were sinners themselves.

Notice that Jesus didn’t simply spend time with and tolerate sinners, but he was their friend. This is amazing given that Jesus was the holy, perfect, creator of all things. Jesus loved sinners and He still does. He was and is drawn to sinners because, as He said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick” (Mark 2:16). So Jesus comes not only to love but also to heal people. The problem for some is that that they don’t know that He is the cure.

This is where we come in. You’ve probably heard it said that a Christian is a beggar trying to show other beggars where to get food. We could also say that a Christian is a healed person trying to share the cure with the sick. Sometimes this means telling people they are sick. Sometimes this means telling people they are using the wrong cure. Sometimes it means telling them there is only one cure. These truths often upset and offend people. But they are still truths that need to be told. As Christians we must speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). This is the struggle, being compassionate yet firm in sharing the truth.

Ultimately, Caren and Corey, you and I, all need the same things. We need God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness. Jesus is the remedy. Though we are healed, we have the tendency to run away from the sick and huddle up with other “healthy” people. This is easier and safer than going back to the sick with the cure that we’ve so graciously been given. But again, we need to follow Jesus’ example. He abandoned easy and safe to come to us and to die for us. He also called us to follow Him.

• Please pray that we at Jeff. Street would be bold and compassionate in sharing the truth, the cure, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
• The Summer HOPE team is coming! On May 26th, Matt, Lindsey, and I will be joined by about 10 new teammates. Please pray for us all in this transition and for our new relationships.

Thunder thoughts

2009-04-20T02:23:00.001Z

Yesterday was the famed “Thunder Over Louisville.” For those who don’t know, this is the largest annual air show and fireworks extravaganza in the nation. Somewhere around 700,000 people attended this year. I was working at Jeff. St. that Saturday morning and many of our homeless guests would stop and chat with me about it. One guy made the comment that his favorite part is that he can carry his bag around and not look homeless. That’s because everyone and their brother is carrying their junk to and from the massive shindig.

That small comment got me thinking about the fact that the emotional and social aspects of homelessness can be just as distressing as the physical aspect. The shame and humiliation from being labeled “homeless” can rob people of their dignity. As Christians, we must realize that being created in the image of God Almighty gives every person inherent dignity. Thus we must strive to treat each other accordingly

Something I’ve struggled with at times is how to make my homeless friends feel comfortable when we take them to church. Commonly when they meet new people some basic questions arise: “How do you know these guys?” “What do you do for a living?” “Where do you live?” For many homeless folks answering those questions is probably more painful than some of their physical strains.

Think of your response when you see someone you suspect to be homeless. For most people, the natural response is to look away or just find a way to ignore them. How do you think that makes a person feel? They must wonder, why are they so afraid of me? What is wrong with me? How terrible it must feel to be continually treated like a second-class citizen . . . or even worse.

The foolish, the weak, the lowly, and the despised . . . are these descriptions of the homeless? Maybe. But according to Paul (1 Corinthians 1:27-29), these are descriptions of the type of people the Lord has called. So maybe we’ve got more in common with the homeless than we think.

I'm a prideful punk

2009-04-11T02:08:00.001Z

On Friday nights, our routine is to have a couple residents over for dinner. Tonight one of the guys, Bart, was a newcomer to Jeff. St. He’s still figuring everything out, including who Matt and I are.

We tried to explain that we are both staff and residents. We tried to explain that we are in the HOPE program and he is in the Fresh Start program. Bart was wondering if the HOPE program might be a better fit for him. A major reason for that may be that our apartment makes the average resident’s room look like a broom closet.

But this discussion caused me to feel a sense of pride and superiority. Part of me wanted to say, “Look, the Fresh Start program is for guys with mental illness and substance abuse problems. The HOPE program is for good Christian folks who want to help those messed-up people.” In other words, “You can’t be in our program because you’ve got too many problems.”

Although I didn’t say any of that, I’m terribly ashamed that this arrogant attitude raised its ugly head. The reality is I am a sinner, just like everyone else. And I don’t just say that because the Bible says so. I witness my own sinfulness every single day (my pride, for example). I’ve got very serious problems and am in need of serious help. Brennan Manning puts it this way, “To be alive is to be broken, and to be broken is to stand in need of grace. Honesty keeps us in touch with our neediness and the truth that we are saved sinners.”

The fact that I do find myself in the blessed position of being able to help others is only by the grace of God. “By the grace of God I am what I am” (1 Corinthians 15:10). I thank God for that. Yet, I cannot forget that I am in need of help as well. I pray I don’t forget this lesson on humility.

April Newsletter

2009-04-05T03:03:00.000Z

Greetings friends and family!

While working the various stations in the Day Shelter, we have the opportunity to converse and build relationships with our homeless guests. That’s the goal anyway. Sometimes I don’t feel like it. Sometimes I don’t want to give my time and energy to delve into their lives and listen to their stories. But sometimes it doesn’t matter what I want to do; folks open up anyway.

Recently, a middle-aged homeless lady, who I didn’t know very well, stopped by the front desk. I asked the polite, yet insincere question, “How you doing?” She replied, “Doing well today. At least I’m not sick. But I will be tomorrow.” I was puzzled by her statement and asked what she meant. I learned that she has cancer and was going to another chemotherapy session the next day. Homeless with cancer – how’s that for a combination? She continued to tell me that she was “ready to go, if He’d just take me” – meaning she was ready to die. We talked briefly about her faith in God and I told her I’d be praying for her.

Another day this week, a young man about my age told me that he was having suicidal thoughts. Besides his grinding homeless lifestyle and his frustrating inability to find a job, he now has a court date looming. He is losing hope. I tried to encourage him with the Gospel, as he is also a believer. I told him, as well, that I’d be praying for him.

As I was typing this up, one of our residents was hanging out in our apartment. At one point he interrupted me to share about his bad day and some issues that were stressing him out. I was again in a position to either show genuine concern or give the minimal response so I could get on with what I really wanted and needed to do.

What I’m getting at by sharing these three snippets is the fact that, probably more than any other time in my life, I’m in a position to respond to people in severe need. So my options are: to not respond at all, to respond robotically, or to respond with genuine care and compassion. This is one of the greatest struggles I have in living, working, and ministering here at Jeff. St.: caring about people.

In a recent prayer service, a pastor reminded us that we should not respond to people’s distressing circumstances with callous indifference. His words, “callous indifference,” have stuck with me. I fear that my time at Jeff. St. is wearing my heart callous and indifferent towards other’s pain.

No matter what our occupation, if we do it for long enough, it can loose its luster. Over time, we can become robotic and mechanical in our activities. If we are working on an assembly line or are doing accounting, that might not be a big problem. But when we are supposed to be ministering to people, particularly hurting and needy people, that’s a big problem.

We’ve been here over six months now, and the honeymoon is long gone. In many ways, what we do is not as easy or enjoyable as it once was. But I must remind myself that I didn’t come here to live a life of ease and enjoyment. More importantly, as Christians, we are not called to a life of ease and enjoyment. Instead, the Christian life is a life of hardship (2 Timothy 2:3) and sacrifice (Romans 12:1). Thus we are called to perseverance and humility. Perseverance: because life’s not always rainbows and butterflies. Humility: because life’s not all about us.

What's more, our perseverance must be of a particular sort. Our perseverance is not simply a mechanical continuation of the daily tasks that are required of us. Our perseverance must be a constancy of love. So I must love like my Father, whose love endures forever (Psalm 136).

• Please continue to pray for our homeless friends as they endure the harshness of their lifestyle.
• Please pray that the Lord would give us the perseverance, humility, and love that we need to minister to our homeless friends.

Spring Break

2009-03-30T00:32:00.001Z

Some of my friends have given me some jabs because I’m 30 and I’ve recently been on Spring Break . . . as if we are supposed to outgrow Spring Break. Well as they say, 30 is the new 20.

But I have put some thought into the idea that Spring Break is a special privilege. Many professionals don’t have the luxury of a Spring Break. But closer to home, in our Jeff. Street context, there is no Spring Break from homelessness. There are no funds to travel wherever one fancies. For many there is no loving and welcoming family to return to. There is simply no time off. Homelessness is relentless.

Taking showers with strangers in shelters. Walking everywhere in all conditions. Having to rely on handouts for food. Enduring hours of utter boredom. Worrying about theft, violence, and rape. Worrying about the future, if able to think beyond today. Life on the streets is both physically and emotionally draining. It is degrading and dehumanizing. And I thought I needed a break.

So it’s true after all, I really am fortunate to have a Spring Break as a 30-year-old. And even more than that, I’m blessed to have a fulfilling pursuit from which to take a break and a stable lifestyle to which I can return.

While we have Opportunity

2009-03-09T03:12:00.000Z

Sam is moving out in the next couple days. He is one of my best friends among the residents. I’ve shared in the past that a resident leaving us brings mixed emotions. Granted, I would not really like for any of my friends to live the rest of their life here at Jeff. Street. It’s a good place, but the idea is that we help people to move on to something better. So I’m sad that Sam is moving out, but I’m happy that he has the opportunity to get his own place. Fortunately we now have the type of relationship that I can call him up and continue to hang out, go to church, and stay connected.

Probably the biggest struggle I’m having is the nagging question, “Have I made the most of my time with Sam?” I must honestly answer “no,” but isn’t that nearly always the case. Certainly we have built a relationship. For a while now we’ve tried to do a weekly Bible study together. Sam went to church with us a couple times. We had many chats over dinner down in the cafeteria. We are friends.

But despite all this, I ask myself, “How much did I challenge him? How much did I encourage him? How much did I show Sam God’s love and share with him God’s truth?” My answer is, simply, “not enough.” Some of you may think I’m being too hard on myself, but I know I’ve missed opportunities with Sam and others.

We all need to heed Paul’s words, “So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith” (Galatians 6:10). Because every opportunity eventually runs out.

March newsletter

2009-03-01T03:21:00.003Z

Greetings friends and family!

My homeless friend, Ernest, is an atheist. He’s the type of atheist who is quite proud of his sophisticated, scientific worldview. He denies all things supernatural, including God. I would also say he is one the more intelligent of our Day Shelter guests. Although he earned more college credits than I did, he never actually received a degree. He is also very well read on the topic of religion, claiming to have read over 300 books on the subject. Nearly every time he comes in, I ask him what he’s been reading. Most of it is stuff I’d be far too intimidated to read, so I just raise my eyebrows, nod my head, and say, “Interesting.” Despite our differences, we’ve had some good discussions about God, faith, and life.

A few months ago, Ernest promised me that he would go to church with us sometime. Why? I’m not sure. I’d occasionally remind him of his promise but I didn’t really expect him to follow through. Then one Sunday, I was pleasantly surprised. Ernest went to church and afterwards claimed to have had a pleasant experience. During our half-hour walk to and from church, Ernest and I had good conversation about his belief in science - my faith in God, his drunkenness - my abstinence, his brief stint as a professional wrestler (yeah, really) - my time as a missionary in Africa, and much more. Although it is hard for us to find common ground, we are each interested in the other’s perspectives. We are definitely an odd couple, yet we get along well.

I continued to wonder what would cause a staunch atheist to go to church. Maybe he wanted to better understand where I was coming from? But he has a church background himself. Perhaps he wanted to find some more reasons to reject our faith? It seems he has plenty of reasons already. Recently I decided simply to ask Ernest, “Why would an atheist like you go to church with a guy like me?” In his typically clever wit he responded, “A better question is ‘why do so many Christians NOT go to church?’” (Touché.) But then, he said more sincerely and matter-of-factly, “I went because you asked me.”

It seems that Ernest went to church simply because we have a relationship. A relationship built on little common ground besides a mutual respect for each other, even a love for each other. More than a couple times Ernest has told me he loves me. At first, I thought maybe he was just being silly or he’d had too much to drink. But more and more I believe he is sincere. It is becoming clear to me that this love and respect is the key to our relationship.

Despite our pleasant relationship, Ernest’s lack of faith in God troubles me. I worry about him. He seems so firm in his beliefs (and doubts) that it will take a miracle from God to change his mind. So that is what I’m praying for.

************************************************************************************

This month I will mark my 6th month of service here at Jeff St. I can honestly say it has been a very challenging but wonderful experience thus far. The work can often be mentally and physically draining. I generally feel inadequate for the job. Nevertheless, I know that I am growing and learning a lot. My teammates and the Jeff. St. staff are great role models and have become great friends. The Lord is using them in my life and I feel that He is using me in the lives of our residents and Day Shelter guests.

Thus the second half of my 1-year commitment remains. I pray that the Lord will continue to teach me, grow me, and use me. I pray that he will give me the endurance, wisdom, boldness, and LOVE necessary for the work. Even more than all that, I pray that he will work in the hearts and lives of those to whom we are ministering. I covet your prayers for these requests as well.

Thanks again for all the prayers you’ve lifted up on my behalf and on behalf of my homeless friends. Thanks also to all of you who are making this year of service possible through your financial support. I am truly been blessed by your generosity. God bless!

Word & Deed

2009-02-15T02:48:00.001Z

One of the attractions that brought me to Jeff. St. was their focus on ministry in both word and deed. Evangelism and service. Meeting spiritual and physical needs. Too often I have done simply one or the other (and sometimes neither). I am still learning about the importance of doing both whenever possible. Lately I’ve been reading (in “Ministries of Mercy” by pastor/author Tim Keller) about the Biblical impetus to minister in both word and deed.

First of all, our Creator and Example, Jesus Christ was describe as “a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people” (Luke 24:19). If we are to be followers, imitators of Jesus, then we need to be ministering in both deed and word as He did.

Keller writes, “As Christ came both to speak and to serve, so the church is gifted both to speak and to serve.” He sites 1 Peter 4:11, “Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies.” Furthermore, Keller points out that most spiritual gifts can be easily placed into one of two categories: word-gifts and deed-gifts. For example, some word-gifts are evangelism, teaching, and exhortation. Some deed-gifts then are service, giving, and mercy.

The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) is clear: we must teach and make disciples of all nations. The Great Commandment is clear: we must love God and love our neighbor. John tells us how to love: “not in word or with tongue, but in deed and truth” (1 John 3:18). The Scripture is clear: “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father” (Colossians 3:17).

Motivation for Mercy

2009-02-09T01:00:00.000Z

What should be our motivation for serving the needy? Often, my main motivation is guilt. It is clear to me that I have an abundance of wealth compared to the average human being. I’ve long felt this to be a good enough motivation to “share the wealth” and serve the poor. Though this may not be the worst motivation, I’m learning that there is a better one.

I’m reading a book by Tim Keller called “Ministries of Mercy.” In it he suggests that our main motivation for loving and serving the needy should be God’s mercy and grace towards us. God has saved me and blessed me immeasurably for no reason besides His unconditional love. Likewise we are to pass on that love to others even when, in our eyes, they don’t deserve it. “We love because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19).

Keller quotes from a sermon by B.B. Warfield in which he answers three common objections we have to serving the poor:

“Objection 1. “My money is my own.” Answer: Christ might have said, “My blood is my own, my life is my own” . . . then where should we have been? Objection 2. “The poor are undeserving.” Answer: Christ might have said, “They are wicked rebels . . . shall I lay down my life for these? I will give to the good angels.” But no, he left the ninety-nine, and came after the lost. He gave his blood for the undeserving. Objection 3. “The poor may abuse it.” Answer: Christ might have said the same; yea, with far greater truth. Christ knew that thousands would trample his blood under their feet; that most would despise it; that many would make it an excuse for sinning more; yet he gave his own blood. Oh, my dear Christians! If you would be like Christ, give much, give often, give freely, to the vile and poor, the thankless and the undeserving.”

In 2 Corinthians 8:2, Paul writes about the Macedonian churches: “their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.” Their motivation for generosity was joy from God’s grace, rather than guilt from their prosperity. In fact, the Macedonians were considered extremely poor. Yet due to their joy in the Lord, they “gave according . . . and beyond their means” (v. 3). The love of God is reason for much joy. Likewise, the love of God is a great motivation for serving the needy.

February newsletter

2009-02-01T19:42:00.002Z

Since coming to serve here at Jeff St., I have seen firsthand the consequences of substance abuse more than ever before. The lessons seem to be coming all the more frequently in recent days. Some of the victims have been weighing heavily on my heart. I certainly do not mean to reinforce the stereotypes concerning homeless folks: alcoholism, mental illness, laziness, and the rest. Homeless folks are as varied as any other group of people. However, it is true that we see a good number of people who are clearly enslaved and oppressed by alcohol. So I’ll share one recent episode.

One of our newest residents, Carl, was suspended for breaking our no alcohol policy his first night here. A couple nights later he came in anyway asking to get into his room. He was sloppy drunk, having trouble speaking and walking. Due to his suspension we told him he'd have to leave for the night and come back when the proper staff person was available to talk with him. Because of his inebriated state and the fact that the temperature was below freezing, I decided to give him a ride to where he was staying: an abandoned building, or in his words an "abandominium."

On the drive there, Matt and I asked Carl about his life and his addiction. Sadly, he told us he had no plan and no hope. We asked about whether he had tried to get help for his addiction. He said he’d tried but to no avail. We then shared that the only true hope is found in Jesus Christ. Carl told us he doesn't believe in Jesus as God's son, but he does believe in God. I figured that rather than argue with a heavily intoxicated guy about the deity of Christ, it might be more worthwhile to challenge him to pray to God and ask him to reveal the truth to him. We also prayed for him before we dropped him off at his abandominium. He was very appreciative of the ride and our prayers. One of the saddest parts of all this is that Carl seems to be a genuinely kind and pleasant man. His life is simply out of control because of his addiction.

Although I was thankful for the chance to share the Gospel and serve Carl in God’s love, this experience left me with a lingering sadness. When dealing with addicts, sometimes their situation does seem hopeless. It seems there is nothing we can do to help. It seems some are truly stuck in an endless cycle. But I know better. I know that God is the God of hope. I know that He is the great Redeemer. I know that nothing is impossible for God. So with Carl, and other like him, all we can do is serve, love, pray, and then leave the rest in God’s hands.

I’m also learning that I need to be very careful not to judge others’ addictions while ignoring my own. Jesus taught us to take the log out of our own eye before trying to help someone else with the speck in theirs (Matt. 7:15). It seems that most addictions have to do with things that in moderation, or in their proper place, are not harmful. The Bible never condemns wine or beer, but drunkenness. Sex is a gift from God, but outside of the proper confines (marriage) it holds many grave consequences. Even wonderful blessings and necessities like food and sleep can be abused. Other addictions are even more subtle – entertainment, materialism, greed, pride, comfort, etc.

The Apostle Paul wrote, “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be enslaved by anything” (1 Cor. 6:12). Like Carl, I too need to fight, in God’s strength, against the addictions that enslave me. Ultimately, his hope and mine is in Jesus Christ who was sent “to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed” (Luke 4:18).

Please pray for:

• the Lord to move in our lives (mine, Carl’s, and others) to free us from our addictions.
• The Lord to equip us with every good thing to do His will (Hebrews 13:21).

Thanks again for your continued prayers and support of our work here at Jeff. St. You are a blessing to me and to this ministry.

Abandominium

2009-01-25T20:27:00.001Z

Last night I had one of those interesting experiences that come with living at a homeless shelter. One of our newest residents, Carl, was suspended for breaking our alcohol policy his first night here. Late last night he came in anyway asking to get into his room. He was sloppy drunk, having trouble speaking and walking. Due to his suspension we couldn't let him into his room and told him he'd have to leave. Because of his drunken state and the fact that the temperature was around freezing I decided to give him a ride to where he was staying: an abandoned building, or in his words an "abandominium."

On the drive there, Matt and I asked him about his life and his addiction. He told us he had no plan and no hope. We tried to share that the only true hope is found in Jesus Christ. Carl told us he doesn't believe in Jesus as God's son, but he does believe in God. We challenged him to pray to God and ask him to reveal the truth to him. We also pray for him before we dropped him off at his abandominium. He was very appreciative of the ride and our prayers. I guess the rest is in God's hands.

A new perspective

2009-01-23T02:46:00.004Z

It might go without saying that living and working at a homeless shelter is giving me a new perspective on a lot of things. This was evidenced during a recent trip to the mall. I went to return a sweater I got for Christmas. I was most delighted to receive the $26 simply for giving back a gift. This caused me to think of some homeless friends who go to great lengths to make a buck. Some begin standing in line at the temp agencies at 4:30 am. Others give plasma twice a week (the maximum allowed) for some quick cash. Some are the folks holding the signs along the road advertising sales for department stores. And here I was just handing over a sweater that was too small.

I've also started looking at mall employees, none of whose jobs I've ever envied before, as having it pretty well. Many of the folks we serve at Jeff St. would love to have a job at JC Penney or Cinnabon or Foot Locker. They would consider virtually any steady job to be a blessing.

And even my perception of the mall patrons has changed. Somehow I now marvel at how all these folks have the money to spend at these overpriced stores. I now see them, and myself, as privileged. Or maybe I should say blessed. Yes, I am truly blessed. This new perspective helps me to recognize that truth all the more.

January newsletter

2009-01-11T23:57:00.000Z

Greetings friends and family!

Sometimes I feel pretty sure that God chose the wrong man for this job. Serving and ministering to the homeless takes compassion, selflessness, patience, boldness, wisdom, and endurance. Therefore, I don’t qualify. Not even close.

Recently in the Day Shelter I was working at the front desk when a drunk guy named Eddie kept coming around. I was getting annoyed by his drunken behavior. I did not show him compassion, I was not seeking to boldly share God’s truth with him, and my patience was wearing thin. I just wished he’d leave, or go take a nap, or something – so I could peacefully get on with my work. Unexpectedly, Eddie somehow brought up the subject of church. It turns out that we each are a part of the same church community (Sojourn). I was quite shocked. Turns out that Eddie had once been panhandling between services when he met one of the deacons who managed to initiate a relationship with him. Now Eddie is a regular on Sunday mornings. Based on our conversation, it appears to me that he is more than just a church-goer. Our dialogue, in the course of his drunkenness, gave evidence that Eddie is a genuine Christian.

This encounter shamed me and encouraged me all at the same time. I was ashamed because I chose not to bother witnessing to this man because of his inebriated state. I had judged him solely because of his outward appearance and behavior. Yet I was immensely encouraged because even despite my lack of effort, God brought about a meaningful conversation between me and Eddie.

Amy Carmichael, a missionary to India from 1901-1951 (without a furlough), once said, “Don’t imagine that by crossing the sea and landing on a foreign shore and learning a foreign lingo you ‘burst the bonds of outer sin and hatch yourself a cherubim.’” In other words, just because one becomes a missionary, pastor, or whatever type of minister, that doesn’t mean they “have arrived.” Neither does becoming a Christian mean that an alcoholic will automatically and immediately overcome their addiction. Though Eddie seems to believe and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for his salvation, he apparently still struggles with alcohol. Likewise, though I live and minister in a homeless shelter, I certainly have not gained any special status, nor have I gained any amazing abilities. I’m no cherubim.

The Apostle Paul called himself the least of the apostles and the chief of sinners. He also wrote, “To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ” (Eph. 3:18). I definitely can relate to Paul’s sense of inadequacy. On my own, I would certainly fail miserably as a minister. I acknowledge that it truly is only by God’s grace that I am able to do any good here at Jeff. St. By His grace I have many meaningful interactions with people like Eddie.

It was also Paul who wrote, “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong . . .” (1 Cor. 1:26-27). When I read this I think, “Maybe God has called the right man after all.”

Please pray for us:

• that the Lord would cause us “to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all people” (1 Thess. 3:12).
• that we would “make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel” (Eph. 6:19).

As always, thanks so much for your prayers and support of our ministry here at Jeff. St. I am blessed to be serving the Lord here.

The eternal significance of caring

2009-01-04T01:02:00.001Z

Matthew 25 describes an awesome and terrifying scene. Jesus, the Son of Man, in all His glory, is seated on His throne, surrounded by the angels. From there He separates the people of all nations, “as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats” (vs. 31-33). The separation, of course, is between the righteous - who inherit eternal life in the kingdom of God - and the condemned - who inherit eternal punishment in the eternal fire.

Now I am a firm believer that salvation is through faith and by God’s grace. We don’t earn it and we don’t deserve it. But Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross has bought our deliverance from the eternal punishment that we deserve. Now we need only trust in Him and repent from our sins in order to gain eternal life in His kingdom. That is my understanding of the Gospel. And that is why this passage in Matthew 25 puzzles, and sometimes, scares me.

In this passage, Jesus bases the separation of the righteous and the condemned on how they treated the needy. Those who fed the hungry, welcomed the strangers, clothed the naked, and visited the sick and imprisoned were counted as righteous. Those who neglected the same . . . “went away into eternal punishment” (vs. 46). And what is even scarier, neither the righteous nor the condemned realized the importance of these encounters with the needy.

I have not changed my understanding of salvation based on this passage, but it does raise some vital questions. What is clear to me is that this passage illustrates the weighty importance of caring for the needy. Apparently the giving of drinks, meals, clothes, and visits can be of eternal significance. Some may find this out too late, but we must consider ourselves warned. As Christians, TODAY, we need to consider with extreme seriousness how we are loving our neighbors, especially the needy.

I will close with some words from the Apostle Paul on the subject: “As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life” (1 Timothy 6:17-19).

((for those who might be interested, a far from exhaustive list of verses on the importance of caring for the needy: Luke 10:25-27, Proverbs 14:21, 31, Matt. 6:2-4, Proverbs 28:17))

Drama, sin, and love

2008-12-21T02:08:00.000Z

Last weekend we witnessed the most drama concerning our residents since I’ve been here. More than a handful of guys made major mistakes and broke rules, mostly independent of each other. Some gave in to old addictions. One, fresh off receiving forgiveness and mercy regarding a previous rules violation, broke the exact same rule again.

All this drama in one weekend weighed very heavily on those of us who have grown to love these guys. As a result of their actions, I’ve experienced feelings of frustration, anger, sadness, disappointment, and helplessness. I guess part of what made it hard is that most of these guys seemed to be doing pretty well.

This has helped me to realize how truly fragile and volatile the majority of these guys and their situations are. The fact that they live here at Jeff. St. means they almost surely have a history of substance abuse and mental illness. Even when these issues are not obvious, they are still a powerful reality. A reality that is not easily overcome.

I’ve also come to think of my relationships with these guys in contrast to my relationship with God. I’m on level ground with these guys – we’re all sinful people. In contrast, God and I are as far from equal as possible. He is holy and perfect. So if I, as a sinner, can be this disappointed, and frustrated, and upset about these other sinners’ actions, how much more offensive must my sins be to a holy God? But in view of my sin’s great offense, how deep is the Father’s love, mercy, grace, and patience towards me? My goal is to live out these same qualities towards others.

an average week

2008-12-14T02:28:00.001Z

My teammates, Lindsey and Matt, and I have been talking about how our days and weeks seem to run together. We’ve been serving here at Jeff. St. for over 3 months now. In some ways, every day is unique. But in another sense, our lives are very much programmed and cyclical. The repetition of the same activities over and over makes it hard to distinguish one week from another. As a result, I’ve felt like I’ve been in somewhat of a rut lately. Because I find it hard to come up with exceptional happenings, I’ve felt like things weren’t going all that great. I’ve felt like maybe I wasn’t doing what I ought to be doing.

But recently Matt made the wise observation that in comparison to other periods of our lives, even an average week here is pretty remarkable. Maybe I’ve forgotten what my “normal” life is often like. Most of my life, I’ve not been much of a servant. Most of my life, I’ve found it difficult to be a witness on a daily basis. Most of my life, I’ve known I should be doing more, but have not been sure how to go about it.

Since moving into the homeless shelter at Jeff. St., I’ve had the opportunity to serve hundreds of needy people every week. Every week, I have numerous meaningful and God-ordained conversations with these people. Every week, I am a part of a unique community of fascinating guys. Every week, I’m blessed to interact and serve alongside my wonderful teammates and the other Jeff. St. staff. Every week, by His grace, God uses me as His witness and ambassador.

It is truly by God’s grace that I am what I am (1 Corinthians 15:10). It is by His grace that I have the opportunities that I have. It is by His grace and equipping that I do not flub up ever single one of those opportunities. I give God the glory for any good that comes of the ministry He’s given me. I’m so thankful that He’s chosen to give me the opportunity to serve the needy here at Jeff. St. I’m so thankful for another average week.

**FYI: I've got some new Jeff. St. photos up on www.picasaweb.google.com/kerrylspencer. Enjoy!**

Peace on Earth is a BIG Deal!

2008-12-09T01:08:00.002Z

Yesterday I had one of those experiences that helps to broaden your worldview. After a great Sunday worship service, several of us decided to try a little hole-in-the-wall Mediterranean place for lunch. Though I’d simply hoped for a tasty gyro and some good fellowship, we all received so much more. The experience didn’t start out so well as there were eight of us and one solitary guy, Abdul, playing the roles of owner, cook, server, and cashier. Possibly feeling a little overwhelmed, as he had other customers as well, Abdul was at the very least unpleasant, if not grumpy. While we were deciding on what to order, I asked where he was from since the décor and his visage indicated he was not American. He told me he was from Palestine. Interesting, I thought. As we waited on the food and discussed Abdul’s bad attitude I made the comment to someone, “You’d be grumpy too if you were a Palestinian.” It was mostly a joke. But I had no idea.

After a great meal, we stacked the dishes and took them back to the kitchen as a kind gesture for our overworked server. Soon after that he came out to chat with us. Somehow, Abdul’s attitude had changed. He asked us where we went to church, where we were from, and how we knew each other. We asked him about his religion (let’s call him a nominal Muslim), his family, and other details of his interesting life. He did most of the talking. He had a lot to say, and a lot to teach young, spoiled Americans like us.

At the age of 6, Abdul began training to be a soldier. In his words, he was being “raised to be a terrorist.” At age 9, he made his first kill. A tank was turning its turret toward his home, so he ran up to the second floor and threw a grenade into the tank’s open hatch, thus saving his family. He asked us what we were doing when we were 6 and 9. Among other things I remember playing with toy guns, knives, and G.I. Joe’s - playing war. He was living war. By sharing his story, Abdul helped us to understand how people might be led to perform terrorist acts (Though not justifying them, for he made clear that he did not consider terrorists to be true Muslims.). He helped us to better appreciate the peaceful lives we’ve so often taken for granted. He helped us to see another perspective.

In the end, with typical Middle Eastern hospitality, Abdul served us free tea and dessert. But that was the least of the gifts our new friend had given us. I look forward to going back to visit with Abdul again. I hope to be able to share something with him as well.

December newsletter

2008-12-01T14:32:00.001Z

Greetings friends and family!

Some ponderings on Thanksgiving:

Traditionally, for me, Thanksgiving has meant family, food, and football (in that order of importance). At our house, generally, the men sit around talking and watching football while the women make the preparations for the great feast in the kitchen. In time, the call is given, someone says the blessing, and the great feast commences. Turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls, and much more . . . we all get so stuffed that we have to put dessert on hold. We then fellowship and watch football a while longer until we find a little more room in our tummies for a sampling of the smorgasbord of desserts. Then the turkey coma ensues. I’ve always loved Thanksgiving because I love my family, I love food, and I love football (in that order).

I spent most of this Thanksgiving Day in a homeless shelter. In many ways, it seemed to be “just another day” for most of our guests. Coffee and cereal for breakfast. Many took showers as usual. Some napped with their heads resting on our cafeteria tables. Just another day . . . except for a big, traditional Thanksgiving meal for lunch. This was our way of trying to make the day special.

I thought a lot about why folks would come here, to Jeff. St., for Thanksgiving. I figure it’s because they don’t have anywhere else to go to enjoy family, food, and football. That saddens me.

On Thanksgiving Day I happened to be the teacher for our daily Bible study. At the end, I asked everyone what they were thankful for. One of our residents responded: “I’m glad I’m not homeless anymore.” Another added, “That God delivered me from drugs and alcohol.” I am not used to these types of responses. By the grace of God, I’ve lived a very privileged and protected life. Hearing testimonies of those who have traveled much more grueling roads has caused me to be thankful that I’ve been blessed with a fairly smooth journey thus far. The Lord has spared me so many trials and tribulations. I am thankful for that. But I am also thankful to serve a God who is a Rescuer, a Redeemer, and a Reconciler (Colossians 1:13-20) for those who struggle and stumble (which certainly includes me). He often allows trials and tribulations to show His love, power, and glory by delivering us from them.

Throughout the day, when asked what they were thankful for, a number of our Day Shelter guests answered, “I’m thankful for just another day of life.” So I’ve been thinking, maybe it is not such a bad thing that Thanksgiving was just another day for many of our guests. Because another day is another day. Each day is a blessing from the Lord. “This is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalms 118:24).
Nonetheless, it is unfortunate and sad that some folks do not have a family to go to or a home in which to cook a Thanksgiving dinner. But I am very thankful to be a small part of a place that provides services for those folks, even on Thanksgiving Day. Jeff. St. is a place that tries to make “just another day” more manageable and enjoyable. But more than that, Jeff. St. is a group of people who tries to introduce struggling and stumbling people to the God who rescues, redeems, and reconciles. I am truly thankful to be a part of this ministry.

I hope that as we all progress through this Christmas season, we will first of all ponder what it is that we are celebrating – namely, the birth of Jesus, the Messiah. The incarnation of God. But secondly, I hope that we will ponder the plight of those for whom Christmas also will be “just another day.” I hope we will also all seek ways to make this Christmas more meaningful and enjoyable for them.

* Praise God for the staff and ministry of Jefferson Street Baptist Center.
* Praise God for each day that He gives us.
* Please pray for boldness and endurance as we seek to serve in word and deed with the love of Christ.
* Please pray for us to make each day more meaningful for those we serve.

As always, thanks so much for your prayers and support of our ministry here at Jeff. St. God has been so good to us. Merry Christmas!

Lavish Grace

2008-11-17T17:03:00.001Z

What’s so Amazing about Grace? As part of our HOPE curriculum we recently read Philip Yancey’s book by that title. The book was very encouraging because it helped me to better comprehend God’s truly amazing grace, love, and forgiveness. It was also very challenging because we are called to pass on God’s grace, love, and forgiveness to others.

We are called to pass them on in both word and deed. This is our job as Christ’s ambassadors. I suppose I’ve generally found it easier to explain God’s love/grace/forgiveness than to live them out. However, recently I’ve had a few conversations that have challenged this idea. I am trying to share with people who struggle to comprehend that it is truly by grace and through faith that we are saved.

Work’s based religion is a temptation for all of us, Christians and non-Christians. We want to earn and deserve God’s favor. But the Bible explains that we cannot work hard enough or become good enough to earn or deserve God’s love and forgiveness.

That is where grace comes in: God gives us better than we deserve. In salvation, forgiveness of sins, eternity with God, we are given infinitely better than we deserve. In fact, God gives us “every spiritual blessing” (Ephesians 1:3) when we deserve nothing. That’s what’s so amazing about grace. It is an astonishing gift from the God who is Love. In a world full of sin and evil, it is not surprising that we have a hard time fathoming God’s grace. In some ways, I’m glad it’s hard to fathom. Most great things are.

“In Him (Jesus Christ) we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us.” (Ephesians 1:7-8)

Nobody's perfect // Nobody's worthless

2008-11-09T02:30:00.001Z

I just had yet another dinner downstairs with our residents. Hot dogs, sauerkraut, and mashed potatoes. I skipped the sauerkraut. I only like the stuff in Germany. But that’s not why I write. I write because I just had yet another moment of taking in the dinner scene, smiling, and thinking to myself, “Could there be a more interesting group of guys to live with?” And by “interesting” I don’t mean weird, intolerable, or obnoxious, as the word is sometimes used.

In case you’ve not heard, I live in a homeless shelter. But this is not just your run-of-the-mill homeless shelter. Virtually all the residents here have a history of mental illness and drug and/or alcohol abuse. Most, if not all, are also formerly homeless. At first glance, these guys might not seem to be the ideal living companions. Ideal? Maybe not. But I would describe most of the guys here as fun, honest, winsome, entertaining, and harmless.

This might surprise you. It surprises me when I think of my initial worries about moving into this situation. Why is it surprising? Stereotypes. Homeless people, drug addicts, and mental patients are not supposed to be good neighbors. That’s what the stereotypes would tell us. But the fact is, every human being is created in the image of God. Therefore, there are indelible qualities of the divine in each of us. Another fact is that every human being is a sinner. Therefore, there are also qualities of wickedness in each of us. So no matter what label we attach to a person, we will find some good and some bad in them. Nobody’s perfect. Nobody’s worthless.

Regardless of this, my experience tells me that I live with a great group of guys. I genuinely love and enjoy them as neighbors. I’m thankful for them. And I’m thankful that stereotypes are not always true.

November Newsletter

2008-11-03T02:50:00.001Z

Greetings Friends and Family!

We are getting busier and busier in the Day Shelter as more folks are trying to escape the cold weather during the day. Only recently, while lying in my warm bed on a cold and windy night, did I let my mind wander: “I wonder where my homeless friends are sleeping tonight . . . “ That was a sad and depressing thought. One statistic claims that 3.5 million people in America will experience homelessness in a given year. How blessed are we who consider shelter a given in life?

Not long ago, Matt and I visited one of our regular Day Shelter guests, Bill, in the hospital. Bill’s a guy who has been very open about his life’s struggles and the fact that he does not know God. Early in our visit, he quickly changed the topic from his physical health to his spiritual condition. As bad as his health was, he realized that his spiritual state was even worse. We began to talk about what he would need to do to “get right with God.” His mindset, coming from a rough upbringing without any Christian influences, was that he needed to clean up his act and do more good deeds in order for God to accept him. We began to share the good news that God does not require our good deeds for salvation. Instead salvation is by grace and through faith and repentance. We shared some scriptures and talked for quite a while on the intricacies of the Gospel.

Eventually the patient on the other side of the room, who appeared to have been watching TV the whole time, pulled back the curtain. My immediate thought was, "this could be really good or really bad." It was really good. By God's providence, Bill's roommate was a retired minister. He told us that he had been listening and that he had some things to say as well. He began to eloquently and powerfully enhance the message we'd been teaching. [At this point I began to feel like I was acting in some cheesy Christian movie in the type of scene that never really happens in real life. But no, this was really happening.] Then the former minister's daughter-in-law, a pastor's wife, arrived and chimed in as well. Bill had a 4-person ministry team to help him understand the Gospel.

Bill was very attentive, soaked it all in. I tried a couple times to push him to formally pray to ask God to save him, which he did not do. At the same time I got the strong sense that God was perfectly orchestrating all of this and that Bill was in fact on the path to salvation. Thus, I decided that we need not rush him. We’ve returned to visit Bill a few more times. Each time we learn of other Christians the Lord had brought across his path to encourage and teach him. Bill has acknowledged God’s divine appointments by saying, “He’s all around me.” Bill is trusting God for his healing and is learning more and more about what it means to follow Christ. Only God knows his heart, but Bill seems to have a newfound Hope, who he is getting to know better and better.

I feel this story of God pursuing Bill is evidence of a lesson that God is reteaching me. The more I learn about God and the Bible and life, the more I come to see that apparent contradictions and paradoxes are actually results of our failure to grasp the complexities of reality. For example, who can understand the Trinity: that God is three, yet one? Or how is it that salvation is by faith, yet good deeds seem to be required as well? And what about our free will and God’s sovereignty? In this same vein, Bill’s story is reminding me that we are responsible to be bold and prepared witnesses, yet it is only by God’s power that our words and actions have any eternal impact. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:1-5, it is not our wisdom or eloquence that will change people’s lives. Instead, it is God’s power.

I’ve been praying, and last time asked you to pray, that I would have boldness and wisdom in my conversations. That’s all well and good, and I’d appreciate you continuing to pray in that way. But lately I’ve been praying more that God would work and make Himself known to the people we share with. Please join me in this prayer.

Some prayer requests:
* Please pray that God would continue to work in Bill’s heart and life (physically and spiritually).
* Please pray that God would work in the hearts and minds of the many others who we minister to here at Jeff. St.
* Please pray that all of us here at Jeff. St. would be a bold and prepared ambassadors for Christ (2 Cor. 5:20).

Thank you so much for your support of me and our ministry here at Jeff. St. Take care and God bless!

Divine appointment at the hospital

2008-10-23T02:09:00.001Z

Matt and I had quite an experience at the hospital yesterday. We learned that one of our regular Day Shelter guests, Bill, had been admitted. Bill is one of the guys we have gotten to know best. He has been very open in sharing about the heartache of his upbringing and numerous family tragedies. He is also open in confessing the wide range of sinful behavior he has been engaged in. He is also honest that although he believes in God, he does not know Him as Savior.

Yesterday, he called the shelter asking if we would come visit. We somewhat reluctantly decided to go (we were tired, busy, etc.). Once we arrived we started with small talk, trying to learn what was up. But he quickly began to talk about his need to get his life straightened out. We began to talk about what he would need to do to get right with God. His mindset, coming from a rough upbringing without any Christian influences, was that he needed to do more good deeds for God to accept him. We began to share the good news that God does not require our good deeds for salvation. We need only to trust in Jesus' sacrifice, ask for God's forgiveness, and turn from our sins to follow Christ. We shared some scriptures and talked for quite a while on the intricacies of the Gospel.

Suddenly the patient on the other side of the curtain, who appeared to have been watching TV the whole time, pulled back the curtain. My immediate thought was, "this could be really good or really bad." It was really good. By God's providence (or is it just luck?), Bill's roommate was a retired minister. He told us that he had been listening in and that he had some things to say as well. So he began to quite eloquently and powerfully enhance the message we'd been teaching. [At this point I began to feel like I was acting in some cheesy Christian movie in the type of scene that never really happens in real life. But no, this was real life. This was happening.] Then the man's daughter-in-law, a pastor's wife, arrived and chimed in as well. Bill had a 4-person ministry team to help him understand the Gospel.

Throughout all this, Bill was soaking it up. He asked questions, made comments, and repeated said, "I don't know much about God but I know I need to follow Him." I tried a couple times to push him to make some sort of commitment, but at the same time I got the strong sense that he is on the path to salvation and that we need not rush him. I got the sense that God was orchestrating all of this. He is in control. It was wonderful to pray together (the five of us) and then leave with the assurance that not only were we leaving Bill in God's hands, but at least for the rest of the night, Bill and his roommate would have the opportunity to continue their discussion. We also left him with a New Testament which we know is the mighty sword of the Spirit. So although we did not see a definitive decision to follow Christ, I did not leave dejected but encouraged and hopeful. I expect that God will continue to move in his life. I look forward to seeing what comes about. I look forward to seeing what role I might play. I am amazed at what God has already done and how He chose to use us in Bill's life.

Count your blessings

2008-10-16T02:22:00.001Z

I’ve been somewhat surprised and impressed by the thankfulness and positive attitudes of many of the homeless folks who I’ve gotten to know. In a recent conversation, one guy told me, “If you saw where I was sleeping you’d say it’s clear that God has been watching over me.” I asked, “Oh, so you’ve found a nice place to stay.” His response showed his positive perspective on a bad situation: “No it’s terrible. Dangerous. It’s an abandoned house. But the fact that I wake up each morning and no one has bothered me . . . that’s a blessing.”

The other day, Matt and I were going around asking our residents if there were any issues we could pray about. One guy, a fairly strong Christian, thought hard for several seconds and then replied, “No. I’ve got no needs.” He’s living in a small, one-room apartment in a homeless shelter and he tells us, sincerely, that he has no needs.

Should I be surprised that there are needy folks who are thankful for what they have? Probably not. Maybe I should be more surprised at the rich who have positive outlooks. After all, the scriptures say it’s easier for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to go to heaven. I’ve been thinking about the phrase “count your blessings.” As for me, and most of you reading this, we have had so many blessings lavished on us that counting them can be a pretty overwhelming task. I wonder how many of us don’t even try as a result. Does it seem to be excessive to thank God every day for food, shelter, health, safety, transportation, jobs, and other blessings that we see as commonplace? Maybe it is those who are truly happy just to be alive or to receive a free meal or to have a place to take a shower who are best able to render the appropriate appreciation to the Lord for those blessings. In my life, those things have been a given. I take them for granted. But I must realize that they have been granted to me, by God. How could I not give Him thanks for them?

October HOPE newsletter

2008-10-10T02:03:00.002Z

Greetings Friends and Family!

This being the inaugural monthly newsletter, let me first fill you in on what I’ve been doing and will be doing throughout my time at Jeff. St. To begin with, we (the HOPE team – Matt, Lindsey, and I) serve the homeless five days a week in the Day Shelter. The tasks are fairly mundane for us, but they are so helpful for those in need. Some of our duties include:

* Checking mail for the 1,200+ homeless folks who use our address who may have no other address to call their own.
* Giving soap, shampoo, detergent, etc. for folks to use our facilities to wash themselves and their clothes who may have no other place to get clean.
* Helping people to store bags that they may otherwise have to lug all around town.
* Serving breakfast daily and lunch most days to folks who may truly be hungry.

To simply be able to help these people with these basic, yet important services is a blessing. But to be able to learn about their stories (often involving broken relationships, lost jobs, prison stays, addictions, etc.) is an even greater honor. In these moments, we can go beyond the physical and minister to the spirit and soul by sharing the Gospel, praying for them, or simply lending a listening ear.

Aside from 30-some hours per week of service in the day shelter, we also stay busy with church activities, HOPE team gatherings, and intentional hours of relationship building with our residents (Wednesday’s focus).

Ironically, one of the most memorable interactions I’ve had with the homeless thus far didn’t even occur at Jeff. St. It was early one Sunday morning, and I was working in the Day Shelter as usual. I took a call from a gal from the church community that I’m a part of here, Sojourn Community Church. She informed me that I didn’t know her but that my director recommended my teammate Matt or me to accompany her as she picked up a new homeless friend to take him to church. I, of course, couldn’t turn down that invitation so we met up and then found her new friend at the McDonalds, just as they’d agreed. He seemed a bit surprised and disappointed that she actually followed through with her offer. But being a man of his word, he went with us. We had a wonderful worship experience and heard some fitting exhortations from the scriptures (Romans 12:9-16). After the service, all it took was my asking, “What did you think?” for our new friend to begin pouring out his heart to us. In summary, his heart and life are broken, in serious need of the Lord’s healing touch. We mostly listened but also tried to console and counsel. As we left church, about an hour after almost everyone else, our new friend was hopeful and upbeat. I was amazed at how the Lord had used us to minister to this stranger turned friend.

The first book we are reading for our HOPE program curriculum is “Under the Overpass” by Mike Yankoski. It’s the story of a young Christian guy who wanted to see if he could truly live out the saying, “All I need is Jesus.” So he decided to give up his career, belongings, and relationships to be homeless for six months. Unfortunately, his radical experiment led him to the conclusion that the vast majority of “church people” are not interested in even acknowledging, much less helping the homeless. One of his reflections in the book reads, “If we are the body of Christ—and Christ came not for the healthy but the sick—we need to be fully present in the places where people are most broken.” Doesn’t this make sense? If we are truly followers of Christ, won’t we follow him to minister among the poor, the captives, the blind, the oppressed for whom He says He came to minister (Luke 4:18)? For much of my life I’ve been guilty of avoiding the broken and sick. But now I feel strongly that the Lord has led me to such people here at Jeff. St. Daily I thank God for the blessing of being able to be a part of this ministry. I pray that the Lord will give me a burden for “the least of these” (Matt. 25:40) for the rest of my life.

I thank you all so much for your support of this ministry in various ways, especially though your prayers and financial gifts.

Some prayer requests:
* Boldness and intentionality in my conversations with our residents and guests.
* Wisdom in conversations: knowing what to say and how to say it.
* Please pray for my new, broken friend, who I mentioned above.

I’m off to a good start in raising the $600 per month, but I’m still a long way off for the total needed for the year. I’d appreciate you prayerfully considering how you might continue to support our ministry here at Jeff. St. It is now possible to donate online at www.hopeforlouisville.com (go to the "donate now" section). Until next time, take care and God bless!

Complacent Comfort?

2008-10-01T03:23:00.000Z

I’m already feeling quite comfortable here. That’s what scares me. You see, I just read in the conclusion of “Under the Overpass”: “Be relentlessly suspicious of your comfortable life, and of the comfort zones that render so many Christian fellowships insensitive and ineffective in our communities.” Unfortunately, when we are comfortable we are often complacent as well.

I’ve made a lot of friends among the residents and our homeless guests. But will I be satisfied with this group of friends without pursuing the rest? I’ve had many conversations on spiritual issues. Will I consider those people “witnessed to” without following up on those discussions? It appears that I’ll see many of our guests and residents almost every day. Might I lose the sense of urgency that “today is the day of Salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2)? Jesus told the parable of the lost sheep to show us the importance of one lost soul to Him and the Father. I pray that I will persistently and intentionally spread salt, light, and truth to all who the Lord brings my way.

Associating with the Lowly

2008-09-22T02:11:00.001Z

We work in the day shelter from about 6:30-10:00 on Sunday mornings before going to church. Today I spent much of that time in our storage closet. Around 9:00, I was told to pick up the phone. Over the phone I met a young woman who needed a favor. She had met a homeless man and had convinced him to go to our church with her, but she wanted a man to ride with them. She had called my director (who happened to be out of town) and he recommended she call and ask for Matt or I. So basically I was in the right place at the right time.

We picked up her homeless friend at a McDonalds and drove to church. We got some coffee, worshiped a bit, and heard a wonderful sermon challenging the church to be a loving community. The pastor challenged us to meet the needs of others, practice hospitality, and associate with the lowly (Romans 12:9-16) – a rather appropriate message, I thought. So after the service, as folks began departing and mingling, I asked our new friend what he thought of the church/message. He had me sit back down. About an hour later, he had finished pouring out his heart and shedding many tears over the desperate state of his life. I mostly listened but also had the opportunity to share the Gospel and a few more thoughts with him. I also shed a few tears, because my new friend is broken and he knows it. Some of his brokenness is self inflicted. He admits that he has been punishing himself for a long time, only falling short of ending his life.

But now he wants change. Now he has friends who want to help him change. Now he seems hopeful. He appears to be the picture of a motto here at Jeff St.: “Hope changes everything.” I’m so blessed to have been at the right place at the right time and to have been able to minister to my new friend. He knows where I’m at, I know where he hangs out, he’s got my number, and he’s planning to join us for church again next week. I pray that this is not the end of the story, but only the beginning. I’d appreciate your prayers for my new friend as well.

How to Entertain Angels . . .

2008-09-19T01:28:00.001Z

What do you think of when you hear the word “hospitality?” For most of my life I’ve thought of sweet, older ladies who are really good cooks and have nice homes. I’ve been the grateful recipient of this type of hospitality throughout my life. I also think of so many precious missionary wives who I encountered during my days in West Africa. The gift of hospitality seems to be a requirement for wives on the mission field. But me? No, I’m not hospitable. Any why should I be expected to be? I’m just a single guy with limited cooking and homemaking skills. I guess God has not gifted me in that area. Or has He?

Sunday at Sojourn (the church I’ll be attending while in Louisville), I heard a great message on Christian hospitality . . . for probably the first time in my life. I wonder why I’ve never heard such a sermon before. After all, hospitality is a command of God. Not just a suggestion for some Christians but a command for all. “Be hospitable to one another without complaint” (1 Peter 4:9). “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love . . . practicing hospitality” (Romans 12:10-13). Hospitality is also a requirement for overseers/pastors (1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:8). The Bible even goes so far as to say that sometimes when we think we’re simply showing hospitality to strangers, we’re actually “entertaining angels” (Hebrews 13:2).

But true hospitality is not simply about entertaining others. At the heart of hospitality are ideas like looking out for the interests of others (Philippians 2:4), inviting the poor/crippled/blind to our dinners (Luke 14:12-14), and accepting others as Jesus did us (Romans 15:7). Essentially, the heart of hospitality seems to be love for our neighbors.

So it seems hospitality is not just for sweet, older ladies who are really good cooks and have nice homes. Hospitality is also for me, a not so sweet young man who doesn’t cook much and lives in a homeless shelter (a very hospitable type of place by the way). And if you are a Christian, hospitality is also for you.

First thoughts

2008-09-16T19:10:00.000Z

I’ve been living here at Jeff St. for right at a week now. I came here with few expectations, but most of those expectations have been exceeded. The staff here is more fun than I’d guessed. The homeless folks are more normal than I thought. The residents are less scary than I expected. I’m getting up earlier than I’d hoped (6 AM).

Despite that last unfortunate realization, life has been good. I really am enjoying serving and getting to know the homeless and formerly homeless (the 30-some guys who live here) who we see every day. Life here is always interesting. For instance, I just got interrupted by one of the residents who is a Cuban guy who speaks very little English. Despite that detail he’s one of my favorite guys to see around. He always gives a warm greeting, usually in English.

I guess most surprising has been how easy it has been to begin building relationships with the guys here. All the guys living here at Jeff St. have been diagnosed with mental illnesses. I’ve had very little interation with such folks in my lifetime (at least to my knowledge). Yet I’m quickly learning that mental illness does not equate to being “crazy” or “psycho” as we might sometimes describe such folks. In fact, many of the guys seem quite normal. Among them are science buffs, sports fans, and avid readers. But still I must realize that these guys are just like me and every other human being in that we all have our problems - some are just more obvious and detrimental than others. We all need help. God is the ultimate Helper and salvation is the ultimate cure. I just pray that the Lord will use me to point others to Him and to His remedy.

A New Adventure . . .

2008-09-02T02:26:00.002Z

Greetings friends!

I’ve now got a new adventure to tell you about!

On September 9th, I will move into the Jefferson St. Baptist Center, a homeless shelter in Louisville, KY, in order to live and serve among the homeless. JSBC’s self-description: “We exist to make the entire good news of Jesus Christ known to the homeless of Louisville – meeting physical, emotional, mental and spiritual needs” (www.jeffersonstreet.org). I will be a participant in their HOPE program (www.hopeforlouisville.com) through which I will serve five days a week in their Day Shelter, helping to meet some of the basic needs of the homeless – providing mail service, breakfast, a storage closet, toiletries, and more. Spending this time in the Day Shelter will lead to in-depth relationships with my new homeless friends, which will allow me to share the Gospel with them in a whole-life sort of way. I will also have great opportunities for service and spiritual growth through my church involvement and the Christian community of the other HOPE participants. I am very excited about beginning this new ministry very soon! I am excited because in recent years I have seen God change my heart to be more compassionate toward the poor and needy. He has given me the desire to attend to both the physical and spiritual needs of people. HOPE is a great avenue through which to channel this God-given desires for ministry.

You have the opportunity to be a part of my ministry through HOPE and JSBC. First, I need your prayers. Please pray for our new HOPE team to get off to a great start: in our training, our relationships, and our acclimation to our new lifestyles. Pray that we will, above all, live lovingly towards each other and the homeless folks we are there to minister to.

Second, the greatest thing that homeless people need is meaningful relationships with Christians that ultimately point to Jesus Himself. These relationships take time to build. To be a part of the HOPE program for a year I will need to raise $6,600. Your financial contributions will allow me to remove the financial burdens of daily life to be able to focus exclusively on loving “the least of these” that Jesus told us are so important to him. And for those giving a gift of at least $50 you can receive a free HOPE T-shirt!

You can send your tax-deductible contributions made payable to Jefferson Street Baptist Center attn: HOPE, 733 Jefferson Street, Louisville KY 40202. Please make sure to designate your check towards my support by writing my Fund ID#: HOPE-0809-KS1 on the memo line of the check. HOPE will send a receipt for each gift given. Do not write my name anywhere on the check as this may negate the tax deductibility of your donation.

As during my time in Africa, I will be sending out a monthly newsletters and blogging about my life and ministry at JSBC. Thus, the former “Faso News” site has now become the new "HOPE News," unless I decide to come up with something more clever. I will also be making a new email list for those who wish to receive my HOPE updates. You can let me know if you are interested in joining this list by writing me at kweetur@hotmail.com.

Also please let me know of others who might be interested in hearing about this ministry or who might like to support me in prayer or financially. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this. Thanks for all your support through the years. God bless!

Traveling home

2008-03-21T00:27:00.003Z

It's good to be home in Kentucky. But I had a wonderfully slow and interesting trip back home from Burkina Faso. Six of my fellow West African colleagues and I visited Casablanca and Rabat in Morocco. Sevilla and Madrid, Spain. And Faro (southern coast) and Lisbon, Portugal. After that I traveled on my own for a few days to Fez, Morocco and then New York City. I'll not go into details of these travels except to say that I had a great time with great friends. Saw some more amazing sights from this amazing world. I am so blessed and thankful to have been able to travel as I have. I've put some of my pictures up on www.picasaweb.google.com/kerrylspencer. Enjoy.

Burkina newsletter #36 (the end)

2008-02-26T11:18:00.005Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! The life of an international missionary includes many ‘goodbyes,’ but fortunately many ‘hello agains’ as well. Another two years of ministry in West Africa is coming to a close. The ‘goodbyes’ have started. The ‘hello agains’ are coming soon. It has been such a blessing to be a small part of God’s plan for this part of the world. I give God all the glory for all that we’ve accomplished these past two years. His provision and protection have been abundant. I praise God especially for his protection on the roads, as a huge part of our ministry included many, many miles of driving on difficult and treacherous roads. Likewise, although sicknesses came – God provided healing. He provided wonderful friends in my missionary community who made a great surrogate family. In our ministry, He provided much-needed co-laborers. Some of those co-labors will continue ministering even after our departure. The Lord also worked his miracle of salvation in people’s lives through our feeble efforts at evangelism. God blessed in so many ways. I give Him praise and thanks for that. Here are some figures to help summarize the last couple years:

We hosted more than 130 volunteers from 20 different states.
Completed research on over 50 different people groups in three countries (BF/Ghana/Niger), involving uncountable miles driven.
5 churches are committed to continuing ministry among some of the least reached people groups after our departure. (see last newsletter for a list)
1 new girlfriend (more news to come).
Many new friends: Burkinabé and American.

The Engagement Team (what our team is called – in case you’ve forgotten) has exciting plans for West Africa in the years to come. For one, it appears that there will be someone to replace us here in Burkina towards the end of this year. Our research will continue to be of use to the IMB, the local Baptist Convention, and other mission organizations. God’s work will continue among the peoples we have begun to engage with the Gospel. Also He will surely be working among those who have not yet been engaged. We know this because one day there will be “a great multitude which not one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb” (Revelation 7:9). This chapter of ministry is closing for me, but I hope to always be a part of ushering in this future reality.

I will leave Burkina around 3 AM on February 28^th. I will fly to Morocco to meet several friends who have also been serving in West Africa. We’ll do a little traveling thorough Morocco, Spain, and Portugal. After that I have a short stop in New York and then I’m back in Kentucky on March 13^th. My plans after that . . . are a bit ambiguous. I will of course be visiting family and friends in KY. But I also will be spending significant time in L.A. – Lower Alabama. For those of you who may not know, I have a girlfriend, Tiffany Folse, who is living there. Our relationship first budded when she came back to Burkina last March (she was a missionary here from 2001-2003). It has been growing and progressing ever since. We are excited to discover what the Lord has in store for us. And of course we appreciate your prayers concerning that.

So this may be the last you hear from me in Burkina Faso (for a while anyway), but I will likely continue to update this webpage and www.picasaweb.google.com/kerrylspencer with pictures from my trip home and any other important news that may come, so stay tuned.

Praise God for:

* His protection and provision during my past two years in Burkina Faso.
* those who will continue to minister to the least reached peoples of West Africa.
* His giving me a girlfriend!

Please pray for:

* safety and good times during my travels towards home.
* the continuing task of reaching the unreached people groups of West Africa.
* Tiffany and I as we seek God’s plans for us.

One last time – thank you so very much for your prayers and for your interest in my life and ministry here in West Africa. I greatly look forward to seeing many of you in the near future. May God bless you abundantly!

kerry spencer

Final thought:

Absence is to love what wind is to fire;
it extinguishes the small, it enkindles the great.
~ Comte DeBussy-Rabutin

Southside and Pastor Kenny (+ my favorite neighbor)

2008-01-28T18:13:00.001Z

I just love this little girl (Mai). She's one of the little neighbor girls who greets me about every time I open my gate. I've posted her pic before but I thought this pic was extra-cute.
What do volunteer teams do over here? Well Jeff and Lynn from Southside got into a corn shuckin' contest. OK - not really. They were just helping out. But don't we have machines for this?
This is Lynn playing a kind-of Simon says game with some kids. We were joking that they were all raising their hands to get saved.
These guys were trying to clean out the tubes of the pump well that Pastor Kenny helped get up and running again. The group of folks in the distance are crowded around the actual well. It's a pretty impressive contraption.
Pastor Kenny splashing some water on some of the guys after getting the pump working again. It's a foot pump so the guy up top is doing the pumping.

Burkina newsletter #35

2008-01-28T18:09:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! I’m excited to report that another salvation has come from Southside Baptist’s ministry (by the grace of God) among the Sambla. Ironically the new believer, Isa (the name for Jesus in Arabic), is a Tiefo man. This is ironic because Pastor Kenny and his church are the ones who have adopted the Tiefo. This shows at least two things. First it shows that Burkina is a very diverse mélange. Second: God is Sovereign – He can use whatever means He wants and He likes to surprise us. Southside also continued to strengthen relationships with the people of the village. They are excited about the possibilities in their continued ministry there.

Pastor Kenny, of Davidson St. Baptist (SC), was, at the same time, ministering among the Tiefo. He had the opportunity, on behalf of his church, to provide a broken part to repair one of their pump wells. The people were very excited to have that well back in operation. There is a saying here: “Water is life.” After helping to repair the well we also got to share about Jesus and the “living water” (John 4) that only He offers. Davidson St. and some partnering churches have a number of future trips planned to continue ministering among the Tiefo.

These were the last two volunteer teams before my departure. It is exciting to see that we have five churches committed to returning to Burkina after our departure to continue ministering among these unreached people groups. To refresh your memory, those churches and the people groups they minister to are:

Southside Baptist (Lufkin, TX) – Sambla people

Davidson St. Baptist & friends (Clinton, SC) – Tiefo

Bartlett Baptist (Bartlett, TN) – Vigué

Compassion Church (Raleigh, NC) – Western Karaboro

FBC Pearland (Pearland, TX) – Dogosé

I thank the Lord for them and ask that you will continue to pray for the Lord of the harvest to bless the ministry He has given each of these churches.

Last time I ask for prayer about the unfortunate possibility of my needing a root canal. I am very happy to report that I no longer have any pain in that tooth. It looks like all is well for the near future. Thanks for your prayers.

In recent days I have been doing a little more research and a lot of cleaning/packing/preparing to leave my house in Bobo. The near future will hold more of the same as well as many goodbyes. Today is exactly one month away from my departure from Burkina (Feb. 28). That is a bittersweet thought. I will avoid getting sentimental here as I hope you write you again to try to sum up my time and give some final thoughts before I leave. Until then . . .

Praise God for:

* the salvation that the Lord has brought about in Isa’s life.
* the ministry of Southside Baptist, Davidson St., and the other churches the Lord has led to minister among the unreached peoples here in Burkina.
* the tremendous improvement in the state of my formerly sore tooth.

Please pray for:

* Isa, the new believer in Badara, that Pastor Isa (yes – two guys – one name) will be able to disciple Him in the faith.
* all five of the churches who have committed to ministering to these unreached people groups. Pray that the Lord would move in the hearts and minds of those the have and will continue to minister to.
* my preparations and goodbyes as I move toward my departure.

Again. Verily I say unto you: I am very thankful for all your prayers and support during the past (nearly) two years. You each have been a blessing to me. God has been so good (no surprise). Blessings!

kerry spencer
www.picasaweb.google.com/kerrylspencer

Final thoughts:

Our imagination so magnifies the present, because we are continually thinking about it, and so reduces eternity, because we do not think about it, that we turn eternity into nothing and nothing into eternity.
~ Blaise Pascal

Therefore:

The least pain in our little finger gives us more concern and uneasiness than the destruction of millions of our fellow beings.
~ William Hazlitt

Jesus Film - feet - peak - Elephants

2008-01-09T16:38:00.001Z

Showing of the Jesus film in Karankasso-Vigue.
African feet.
This is actually the highest point in Burkina Faso. Just about 2500 feet - it's a pretty flat country. Off in the hazy distance is Mali. We were a bit surprised to find that this lady had chosen this scenic place as her personal pounding place. She's pounding corn likely to make into "to" the local staple dish.
Elephants. Notice the tiny baby below the one on the left.
Yes they were very close. (Special thanks to Becky Babcock - all-star photographer - for these two elephant shots.)

Burkina newsletter #34

2008-01-09T13:17:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! I hope everyone had a blessed Christmas celebration. We sure did. We were blessed on Christmas Eve to receive news from the Bartlett Baptist team that a lady named Safi had had two dreams of Jesus Christ and that after waking up she believed in Him as Savior. By placing her faith in Christ she has become the first known Vigué believer. That is a miraculous answer to many prayers. Praise God for that! But Safi very much needs your prayers as well. She is virtually alone in her faith in Karankasso-Vigué (aside from the Holy Spirit). Pray that God would provide the means for her to grow in her knowledge and faith.

Besides spending a few days in Karankasso- Vigué with the ladies from Bartlett Baptist and showing the Jesus Film there, we also had a great celebration of Jesus’ birth and then visited the Nazinga game park to bring in the New Year. We saw plenty of elephants, gazelles-type-creatures, baboons, warthogs, etc.

The next 10 days will be busy ones. Tonight another team from Southside Baptist (Lufkin, TX) will arrive. They are coming to continue their ministry to the Sambla people of Badara where they have already seen one person trust in Jesus as Savior. On Friday Pastor Kenny of Davidson St. Baptist (South Carolina) arrives. He is making his second trip and will be doing some evangelism and discipleship among the Tiefo people. The local Baptist pastor who we partner with in Badara, Pastor Issa, is getting married this Saturday (the 12^th) so we will all attend that celebration.

Joyce Hall and Debbie Cook will leave us on the 16^th. Both have made multiple trips to Burkina. Joyce came to be with us for three months immediately after her recent retirement. She is proof that there can and should be more to retirement than taking it easy and staying comfortable. Our usefulness to the Lord’s work never expires. May our readiness and willingness never expire either.

On a personal note: I’ve visited two dentists in the past two days. The first told me I need a root canal. The second (who had much more impressive equipment) assured me I don’t need a root canal. Instead he simply did some minor grinding to help my bite. So right now I’m very thankful to not be having a root canal in Africa, but I’m not sure if the problem is really solved. I’d appreciate your prayers regarding this.

Also it is now official that I will leave Burkina in the early morning of February 28^th. After traveling with some friends, through Morocco, Spain, and Portugal, I’ll arrive back home on March 13^th.

Praise God for:

* the ministers he has sent to minister among the Vigué (Bartlett), Sambla (Southside), and Tiefo (Bro. Kenny) people groups and for Joyce, Debbie, Wade, and Sherida who have spent time among multiple groups.
* the miracle He performed in Safi’s life – bringing her to faith in Christ.
* a favorable second opinion from the dentist.

Please pray for:

* Safi, the new Vigué Christian, – that the Lord will provide the means for her discipleship.
* the Sambla people of Badara and the Tiefo of Ngafongo who we will minister to in the coming days.
* God to give us boldness and wisdom as we share His Word.
* the healing of my sore tooth.

I thank the Lord for the work He is doing here and for the part you and your prayers have played in that. May God bless you!

kerry spencer

Final thought:

If we were sufficient for everything, we might attempt everything . . . but life is short, and we are dull, and eternal things are necessary.

~ Richard Baxter

Christmas photos

2007-12-20T17:03:00.001Z

Some of our missionary community (plus some visitors) at our Christmas party in Ouagadougou.
Nativity scene mural inside a Catholic church in Kaya - Burkina Faso.
Christmas peppers. Hey they're red and green right? Like those Christmas M&Ms.
The Burkina Christmas flower. That's what I'm calling it.

Christmas tree salesman in our capital.

Burkina newsletter #33

2007-12-20T16:47:00.000Z

Seasons Greetings from Burkina Faso! FBC Pearland had a very successful vision trip. After seeing some of the many needs here they left feeling a strong leading to come back and do some discipleship training and evangelism with a specific focus on the Dogosé people. We are very thankful for their visit and their concern for the unreached peoples of Burkina Faso. Please pray that God would continue to guide them as they ponder and prepare for their future ministry here.

Currently the four ladies from Bartlett Baptist are living and ministering among the Vigué people. Bartlett is what we call an Engaging Church. What that means is they have chosen to have a long-term ministry among a people group even when missionaries (like me and the Woods) have left the area. Therefore they are responsible for developing their own strategies and taking care of their own logistics (such as transportation/food/translation/money matters/etc.). That is a huge undertaking. As part of preparing for the future we are allowing them to experience most of this trip without our involvement (we’ll join them near the end of their stay). It is hard to leave them on their own but that is part of the weaning process. The Vigué (who claim to be 100% Muslim) just celebrated one of the most important Islamic holidays, Tabaski (also know as Eid al-Adha in much of the world). The team from Bartlett will soon be celebrating Christmas and will have a chance to explain the significance of this holy day for Christians. Please pray for the Lord to open the eyes of the Vigué to the light of Jesus Christ.

The fact that we are not out with the Bartlett team works out well as we have two more volunteers coming in tonight. Wade Whynot is a former volunteer who is coming back with his special friend Sherida. We will be traveling around some and of course spending Christmas together. Our Christmas plans are to celebrate with Pastor Dénis and his church in the morning and then have a dinner with some fellow missionaries that evening.

I recently did a little traveling with William Haun who is an excellent photographer and a serious computer nerd (he knows I love him). He is one of the folks responsible for a lot of what you may have seen at www.gowestafrica.com. If you’ve not been there lately you should check it out – it’s got a new look. I also highly recommend his site www.haunsinafrica.com. His wife, who’s studying to be a doctor, is a spending a few months interning at our hospital in Nalerigu, Ghana. Thus you can find some pretty incredible surgery photos (my personal favorite being the finger amputation slideshow – posted Dec. 11). For those of you with weaker stomachs there are also many great non-surgical photos. You can even find a few references and photos of me (posts begin Dec. 13). While I’m giving you some websites – I’ve recently added some more photos to my page: http://picasaweb.google.com/kerrylspencer.

Praise God for:

* FBC Pearland and Bartlett Baptist – for their service among the unreached of Burkina Faso.
* the safety and health the Lord has given us in recent weeks.
* sending His Son Jesus Christ to “save his people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21).

Please pray for:

* FBC Pearland as they prepare for future ministry in Burkina.
* Bartlett Baptist as they share Christmas with the Vigué people.
* the Vigué people - that the Lord would “open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light” (Acts 26:18).
* Wade, Sherida, and us as we travel and minister together.

Thanks so much for your continued prayers and support. I pray you are making time to go beyond all the superfluity of the Christmas season to the foundation: celebrating the miraculous birth of the Son of God, God-Himself, Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas!

Final thought:

When I give I give myself.

~ Walt Whitman

Just pics

2007-12-04T16:13:00.000Z

Red dragonfly.

Waterfalls as the sun falls near Banfora.

Old-timer.

Young Fulani gal.

Burkina newsletter #32

2007-12-04T15:53:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! This past month we hosted another volunteer team on a vision trip to see the reality of lostness among the Komono and Dogosé peoples. A group from the Bifork Association of churches in northern Texas spent several days among these people and, as we have been, were overwhelmed by the needs they saw: physical and spiritual. They are now processing what they saw and are trying to discern how the Lord is leading them to respond to those needs. Please pray for God’s guidance for them. Similarly, another church from Texas (FBC Pearland) arrives tonight and will have a similar vision trip. The only difference is we plan to expose them to several different people groups. They will appreciate your prayers for guidance as well.

As most of you (those who live in the States) are in the midst of another Christmas season, I ask you to ponder places and peoples who have no Christmas season. It is not only that they do not have the cultural trappings of the holiday: Santa and the reindeer, candy canes, snowmen, Christmas trees, or multi-colored lights, for that would be no great shame. But they don’t have a celebration of the birth of the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. Though many have heard of Jesus, and the Muslims even acknowledge Him as a great prophet, they do not know him as Savior and Lord. This is the reality for the majority of people in this country and in many countries around the world. And for people groups like the Vigue, there may not be a single person who has reason to celebrate Christmas this year. That is a tragedy. One that we want to change. That is why Bartlett Baptist church has already sent four teams to minister among the Vigue. That is why several ladies from that church have decided to spend this Christmas with the Vigue – to share the message of Christmas and salvation with them. As you celebrate Jesus’ birth this year, please pray for those who are not celebrating. And consider how God might use you to minister to them. Let us be thankful that we have something to celebrate – eternal life with the Lord, through the life and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ!

Praise God for:

* sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to seek and to save the lost.
* the Bifork Association, FBC Pearland, and Bartlett Baptist churches – for their interest in and commitment to the unengaged peoples of the world.

Please pray for:

* God to guide those from Bifork Association and FBC Pearland as they seek how the may serve Him in Burkina Faso.
* Bartlett Baptist church as they continue to minister among the Vigue.
* the Vigue people – that some would finally come to accept Jesus as Savior.

As always – thanks so much for your prayers and support. You may find some new photos at picasaweb.google.com/kerrylspencer. May your Christmas be joyous and heartfelt!

Final thought (as a Christmas bonus – an extra quote):

When we were children we were grateful to those who filled our stockings at Christmas time. Why are we not grateful to God for filling our stockings with legs?

~ G.K Chesterton

There has been only one Christmas – the rest are anniversaries.
~ W.J. Cameron

Marense Bible distribution

2007-11-08T16:49:00.000Z

So this doesn't have much to do with distributing Bibles but I like the pic. Just a millet field at sunset.
Cory Wilson - former missionary to the Marense - presenting a Bible to a chief in Sagtambila.
Marense guys reading the Bible in their own language for the first time. The guy on the right is a local pastor who joined us for the trip.
Tiffany Folse - another former missionary to the Marense - presenting a Bible to an old Christian lady in the village of Tafgo.
Again - nothing to do with distributing Bibles - but how can you not love the pic? This is another Marense chief who received a Bible.

Great Northern Adventure

2007-11-08T16:11:00.000Z

This is our vacation crew in front of the Alamo. Just kidding. Actually this is one of the "seven famous mosques" in Bani. From left to right the crew is me - Tiffany - Bianca - Nichole - Ami - and Cory Fish. Nichole and Ami serve at an orphanage in Yako (www.sheltering-wings.org). Cory and Bianca are with the Peace Corps. Tiffany is with me. Oh and she was a part of the Marense Bible distribution.
These are the dunes at Oursi.
This is an amazing baby praying mantis. Or is it a pygmy praying mantis?
This is me with my camel Smarty Jones. The guides told me its name was Emily but I didn't feel that was an appropriate name so I changed it.
Nichole appreciating an amazing chameleon we came across in the desert.
See more photos of our adventure at http://picasaweb.google.com/kerrylspencer.

Burkina newsletter #31

2007-11-08T13:50:00.001Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! The past few weeks have been a break from the norm – a blessed break. It started with a reunion of several former missionaries (and great friends of mine) to the Marensé people. They came to distribute the newly-printed Marensé New Testament. In all we visited and distributed the Bible in 13 villages. The reception of the Word was almost universally enthusiastic – even among non-Christians. This causes me to ponder whether I still have the appropriate joy over the fact that I have always had the Word of God written in my language and that I am literate enough to able to read it. It was a great privilege and experience for me to travel with the team as they shared the written Word of God with the Marensé for the first time. It was also a great time of fellowship with dear friends. I am thankful for these opportunities.

After most of the Marensé Bible distribution team left, I took a short vacation to northern Burkina – the sandy part. It was fascinating to explore another very unique part of God’s creation. It’s not everyday that you get to ride on a camel, see a chameleon, watch countless shooting stars, and sleep on a sand dune. This was also another great time of fellowship with several of my good friends serving in different ways here in Burkina. [Coming soon: photos of my vacation and the Marensé Bible distribution on kerryspencer.blogspot.com and my new photo site: picasaweb.google.com/kerrylspencer ]

One of the places we stayed in Gorom happened to be a Catholic orphanage. We spent part of one morning visiting the children and learning about the ministry there. Then after our vacation, I joined a few of my vacation buddies for another short visit to the orphanage in Yako (Nichole and Ami – part of our vacation group – serve there). Each time I visit this special place I learn more about the many challenges they face in caring for about 40 orphans. Each time I leave the orphanage I leave with a greater appreciation for the ministry and witness they are providing. Caring for widows and orphans is one of the many ministries that God has entrusted to us as the body of Christ. Please pray for these orphanages in Gorom and Yako.

Now that vacation is over, it is time to get back to the ministry God has given me at this time. Tonight we will welcome a team of five men from the Bifork Association of Baptist churches (TX). They are coming for the first time to take a vision trip to see how the Lord might use them among the unreached peoples of Burkina Faso. We are going to take them to scout out the land of the Dogosé and Komono peoples of far southwestern Burkina. Having already taken three trips to visit in the area I can say that these are some of the least evangelized and most difficult to reach (physically speaking) people groups in Burkina Faso. Reaching them will be a huge challenge. Pray that the Lord will provide the strength, wisdom, and endurance to meet the challenge.

Praise God for:

* sending the Word of God (now in written form) to the Marensé people.
* the blessing of fellowship with good friends and a short time of vacation.
* sending the Bifork Association to explore the opportunities for ministry in Burkina.

Please pray that:

* “the Word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be glorified” among the Marensé people (2 Thess. 3:1).
* God would provide for and bless the ministry to orphans in Gorom and Yako.
* God to reveal His will to the Bifork Association of churches as to how they can serve Him in Burkina.
* God would move in the hearts and lives of the Dogosé and Komono peoples.

Thanks so much for your continued prayers. I am truly blessed to have your support. God bless!

kerry spencer

Final thought:

I want to know one thing: the way to heaven. God Himself has condescended to teach me the way. He has written it down in a book. Oh, give me that book! At any price give me the book of God. Let me be a man of one book.
~ John Wesley

Burkina newsletter #30

2007-10-16T16:57:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! A couple weeks ago I did some research among the Zaorsé people. We knew there were many Baptist churches among them but needed to update our statistics. I was pleased to learn that there are 57 Baptist churches and almost 5,000 believers among an ethnic group of only about 28,000 people. That’s simply amazing! Unfortunately there is no other people group in Burkina in which we have seen similar results from Baptist work. So of course we look at this example and try to learn some secrets of this spiritual success. Ultimately we know that God gets all credit and glory for the fruit that has been seen there. Yet if we look at the missionary dealings among the Zaorsé we notice that this is one of the places where we had the longest, sustained presence of full-time missionaries. Our team’s main purpose is to connect churches and short-term teams with unengaged people groups. We are truly thankful for the churches who are answering this call and God is using them. However this strategy has come about largely because there are not enough full-time, long-term missionaries to get the Gospel to the plethora of unreached people groups. Still the ideal is long-term, sustained ministry. So I just want to take this opportunity to challenge each of you to consider and pray about your role in the Great Commission. The Lord uses all sorts of people in all sorts of roles: prayers, givers, senders, short-term and long-term missionaries. All are necessary and important. May the Lord guide and use us all.

The other big happening over the last couple weeks was Southside Baptist’s (Lufkin TX) ministry among the Sambla people. Although the team was somewhat hindered by a little sickness, still the love of God was shared. New relationships were built and old relationships were strengthened. The team also picked up a little language. Please continue to pray for the Sambla people.

Before taking on their current role on the Engagement Team, my supervisors, David and Tami Wood, were the leaders of the Marensé team (during my first term). The Marensé are a small people group found in north-central Burkina. Part of the ministry that some of the team members took part in was to begin the translation of the New Testament into Marensé. Even after full-time missionaries left their area, Marensé believers continued the project. The Marensé New Testament has just recently been completed and has now been printed. Several former Journeymen from the Marensé team (some of my very good friends) are thus coming back to help dedicate and distribute the New Testament. The first of the team members will arrive tomorrow (the 17^th) and most will be gone by the 1^st of November. That is what I’ll be up to the next couple weeks.

Immediately after that I’ll be taking a four day vacation/adventure to northern Burkina to see some dunes, camels, and other deserty stuff. I’ll be joined by several of my good friends working here in Burkina (peace corps and orphanage workers) and one of the former Marensé team members.

Praise God for:

* the many churches and believers among the Zaorsé people.
* the completion of the New Testament in Marensé.
* Southside Baptist’s dedication to reaching the Sambla for Christ.

Please pray for:

* God’s direction in your own life concerning how He can use you in the Great Commission.
* the upcoming dedication and distribution of the Marensé New Testament. Pray that there would be many opportunities to share the Truth and that many would accept it.
* a safe and enjoyable vacation/adventure to the north.

As always thanks so much for your continued prayers and support. I also want to inform you of a new website for viewing some of my photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/kerrylspencer. I plan to update the pics periodically. Enjoy. God bless!

Final thought:

Our young men are going into the professional fields because they don’t “feel called” to the mission field. We don’t need a call; we need a kick in the pants!

~ Jim Elliott

Pics from the Western Karaboro

2007-10-02T21:26:00.000Z

Just another example of African ingenuity. This is a load of cloth strapped on the back (and front) of the moto with a couple strips of rubber. This belongs to a merchant who came to sell his cloth in the market. [All these photos are courtesy of David Myers - superstar volunteer.]
Nice silhouette of some palm trees at sunset in the Western Karaboro village of Tengrela.
Kid holding up a tree? No he's (or she's) watching the Jesus film. See photo below.
One of several groups we showed the Jesus film to last week. You can't quite see it but the film is being shown on a small portable DVD player (on a chair behind the limb). We usually show the film at night but decided to squeeze in a matinee under the mango tree.
We did a lot of praying for the needs of the Western Karaboro. The word got out and many people can to us to be prayed for. Others were brought - like this young boy, who has some leg problems (you can really tell when he walks). If you look closely you can see a couple leather pouches hanging around his neck. These amulets are given - for a price - by the local witchdoctor. They are supposed help the boy or protect him from whatever spirits might be causing his problems. The people were surprised and delighted that our prayers were free! Please join us in praying for the Western Karaboro to know the love, power, and grace of Jesus Christ.

Burkina newsletter #29

2007-10-01T16:39:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! I’ve spent the past couple weeks mostly with two people groups among whom I’ve never met a Christian: the Vigue and Western Karaboro. We’ve always had a warm reception among the Vigue and our relationships built in Karankasso-Vigue (their primary village) only continue to grow. I’m told that as the Bartlett team left this time they gave the chief a few blown up photos of himself and their past teams. The chief shed tears upon receiving the gift. Each time we leave he tells us that he hates to see us go. We continue to share the Gospel and pray for the Vigue but thus far have not seen fruit. We trust that the Lord has a plan for the Vigue people and ask you to continue to pray for them. Bartlett Baptist has another trip planned for December.

I spent the past week with two volunteers from Compassion Church (Raleigh) among the Western Karaboro and Senara peoples. Unlike the Vigue, the W. Karaboro chief has not welcomed us is the past. We decided to give them another chance instead of shaking the dust off our feet and continuing to another group (Matthew 10:14). In our initial meeting the chief was again cold and inhospitable. He told us that his people are not interested in our religion (we perceive that they are very interested). However, each day that we met with the chief he warmed up to us more and more. We were even allowed to show the Jesus Film twice in two different parts of the village. Our other main ministry was to simply pray for people’s needs. One evening we walked from family to family asking if we could pray for their sicknesses and needs. The people were very open to that, and we prayed for many people. The next day we were planning to do the same only before we started walking around people began coming to us and asking for prayer. We even had a hard time leaving because people just kept coming to be prayed for. Something that struck me is that I recall at least four people who asked us to pray for them because they are constantly afraid or worried. I can only imagine that this is attributed to the evil spirits that are so much a part of their lives. The W. Karaboro and Vigue will each tell you that they are 100% Muslim, but it seems that animism/voodoo/African traditional religion is still the religion which reigns. Through our prayers God has the ability to make His love and power know to the W. Karaboro. Please pray that he does. Another exciting thing about our time with the Karaboro is that we built a good relationship with two nearby pastors who are planning to follow up on the ministry we began. They are also excited about continuing to partner with us and Compassion Church in the future. Praise the Lord for this.

We also spent a few days with an old friend, Pastor Alphonse, and helped him with his ministry among the Senara people. There we also showed the Jesus Film two more times and visited among the people. One young man asked us the question, “If one decides to follow Jesus, will the evil spirits immediately leave him alone.” We of course responded with a “yes.” We spoke with one old man who said he’s almost ready to throw all his idols in the fire and follow Jesus. This is a picture of the kind of radical life-change we hope to see in all the Vigue, W. Karaboro, and Senara. Please continue to pray “that the word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be glorified.” (2 Thessalonians 3:1)

Up next: The third team from Southside Baptist (Lufkin, TX) arrives on the 3^rd. They will be ministering in a couple Sambla villages. The last time the team was here they saw a man come to receive Christ. Please pray for more of the same. I will likely spend part of my time with the team and part of my time researching.

The apostle Paul wrote, “I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men . . . this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:1, 3-4). Here are some ways to do that:

Praise God for:

* opening the door for us to pray and witness to the Western Karaboro (Colossians 4:3).
* new relationships with two local pastors interested in partnering with us to reach the Western Karaboro.
* sending laborers to aid in the harvest (Bartlett Baptist, Compassion Church, Southside Baptist, and others).

Please pray for:

* the seeds of the Gospel sown among the Vigue/W. Karaboro/Senara to grow in people’s hearts and minds (1 Corinthians 3:6).
* the W. Karaboro to give glory to God for His response to our prayers for them.
* God to move in the upcoming time of ministry among the Sambla people.
* success in my next research trip.

As always I thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers for me and the unreached peoples of Burkina Faso. God bless!

Final thought:

For us, there is only the trying. The rest is not our business.

~ T.S. Eliot

some more random Fasopics

2007-09-11T09:09:00.000Z

Unfortuntely my camera is back in Kentucky being repaired so I don't have any new pictures for you. Fortunately I have a "random Burkina" folder on the laptop. Here are a few I picked out for you. This one - a tree.
Handicapped lady selling papers and phone cards on the side of the road in Bobo.
I've been stuck in the mud a couple times in the past month. This is an example of a place where that might happen. Although I'll say the places I found to get stuck were much more treacherous.
Driving into a storm front.
Dude getting coconuts or fixing the phone lines or something.

Burkina newsletter #28

2007-09-11T08:46:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! Two and a half weeks – 3 research trips – 9 different people groups – many more adventures. That’s the summary of what’s been going on since last time. The good news is that I was able to confirm that the Lobi, Birifor, and Nankana are some of the most evangelized peoples in Burkina. A number of denominations are well established among each of these groups. The Dogon and Loron peoples, on the other hand, have very few Christians among them. The other groups (Kalenga/Gan/Kusasi) are somewhere in between (we were only able to locate a very small number of Bozo). I must leave out the harrowing African adventure stories at this time to tell you more about what’s to come.

As we have wrapped up another round of research trips, we are now preparing for another wave of volunteer teams. Wednesday, I’m going back to Karankasso-Vigue with a few Burkinabé believers to prepare the way for another team from Bartlett Baptist (their 4^th). The team arrives on the 17^th. I remind you that we still know of no believers among the Vigue. Karim, Ali, and Boureima are a few of the men with whom we’ve shared the Gospel – you can be praying for them. Soon after the Bartlett team begins their ministry I will have to leave for Ouagadougou (our capital/airport). That is because we will welcome back the 2^nd team from Compassion Church (Raleigh) on the 22^nd. They are hoping to minister among the Western Karaboro people – who like the Vigue have no known believers. However the last time we were in their main village (Tengrela) their chief told us we were not welcome to come share our religion there. We are thus arranging a meeting (Sept. 23^rd) of some of the pastors in the area to discuss how to go about taking the Gospel to the W. Karaboro. We feel that our white skin is part of the problem and that local believers might have a better chance of penetrating the W. Karaboro. We may also pay another visit to Tengrela and see if things have changed with the chief there. If so we will gladly stay and do whatever ministry the Lord allows. If not, our backup plan is to do some ministry among the Senufo-Senara further west. The Senara are a strongly animistic (African traditional religion) people who are only about 0.1% Christian. Obviously, unlike the Lobi, Birifor, and Nankana (mentioned above), the Vigue, W. Karaboro, and Senara are some of the least reached people in Burkina Faso. They need the Gospel and they need prayer. Please join us in praying for the Word and love of God to be shared during the next couple weeks. Both the Bartlett and Compassion teams will leave on the 29^th.

Praise God for:

* the Churches and believers that we have found well established in some areas of Burkina.
* safe and successful research trips despite the difficult conditions.
* the commitments of Bartlett Baptist and Compassion Church to bring the Gospel to the ends of the earth.

Please pray for:

* the Lord to send laborers to the Dogon and Loron of Burkina – that they might hear and accept His Word.
* the Vigue, Western Karaboro, and Senara people – that the Lord would open their hearts to the Gospel.
* us and the churches coming to partner with us from Bartlett and Raleigh – that the Lord would lead us and use us for His glory.
* the meeting with local pastors that we will have on the 23^rd – that the Lord will give us all wisdom and guidance concerning how to approach the Western Karaboro.

I am truly blessed to have your support in the ministry over here. I thank God for you all. Blessings.

kerry spencer

final thought:

If you look at the world you’ll be distressed,
if you look within you’ll be depressed,
but if you look at Christ you’ll be at rest.

~ Corrie Ten Boom

Burkina newsletter #27

2007-08-23T12:06:00.000Z

**Sorry but this newsletter is a little dated. I typed it up 9 nine days ago and forgot to post it.**

Greetings from Burkina Faso! August is the heart of rainy season here in Burkina. That is good for farmers and bad for researchers – as you’ll soon learn. Since last time I have been on two research trips, the first toward the border with Benin (Berba people group) and the second toward the border with Mali (Samo people group). Both trips proved to have a little adventure but were nonetheless successful. Minutes after having finished the research on the Berba some fan belts in the truck snapped leaving my traveling buddy Rodolphe and I stranded for about 4 hours while we waited for our rescuers to arrive from the capital. Fortunately we had finished the research and were able to use the time for reading (had some books), rest (had mats), worship (had a guitar), prayer (had the Lord), and some exploring in the bush (see photos below).

On the most recent trip we traveled among the Samo, to the northeast of Bobo. The Samo are quite a large group consisting of several different dialects. Yet the Lord allowed us to find some key people to give us the necessary information. Upon traveling to our last stop, a pastor far out in the bush, we encountered a road better suited for a canoe in some places than a car. We gave it a valiant effort but our rugged 4x4 truck finally succumbed to the mud. After fruitless efforts by Rodolphe, myself, and a hitchhiker (pastor’s brother we happened upon) to free the vehicle, it was decided that the hitchhiker and I should walk (and wade in water up to our knees at times) the rest of the way the pastor’s village. After just about 30 minutes we arrived and got the necessary information from the pastor. He then escorted me back to the truck and recruited man power from the folks working in the fields along the way. A couple hours, a half a dozen strategies, and 15 strong Africans later the truck was emancipated from the mud pit. As we drove off, Rodolphe said, “We sure do have a lot of ‘experiences’ together.” I could think of a lot of other words to substitute for “experiences.” In the end though, God is always good, our research trips are successful, and we have stories to tell. I’m happy to report that there are churches already doing good work among the Berba and Samo peoples. We need only encourage them and support them in prayer.

Tomorrow I will take another research trip, this time with Chris Long, an EMT who is volunteering with us for about a month. We will travel to different areas along the Mali border to search for the Dogon and Bozo peoples (yes that’s their real name). These are both people groups native to Mali who spill over a little into Burkina. We actually know very little about their locations so it will truly be a hunting expedition. Pray that the Lord will help us find them. After that – more research and adventure.

Praise God for:

* successful research trips among the Berba and Samo – including the adventures.
* the good ministry already going on among the Berba and Samo people.
* good rains which cause mud pits and crops to grow.

Please pray for:

* continued safety and success on upcoming research trips.
* the ministry among the Berba and Samo to continue to advance.
* the peoples of Burkina who do not have the blessing of many churches and believers: the Vigue, Western Karaboro, and Komono, to name a few.

Thanks so much for your continuing prayers and support. God is with us! Blessings!

final thought:

Sympathy is no substitute for action.

~ David Livingstone

Bugs

2007-08-02T14:50:00.001Z

My good friend Rodolphe (the guy in the photo) and I recently took a research trip toward the Benin border. On the way we saw this elephant (and another) on the side of the road. Later we had a couple fan belts break and were stranded for about 5 hours on the side of the road. During that time we encountered some of the bugs seen below.
The amazing dung beetle rolling his ball of dung.
A couple sculpting the ball out of a fresh cow patty.
This is a big stinkin spider! His rear end was bigger around than my thumb!
Butterfly on Nalgene.

Michael Roach photos

2007-07-29T21:33:00.001Z

Michael Roach was one of the many volunteers we had this summer. He is quite a good photographer and was very kind to share his pics with me - and you. This is one of the fine roads we travel fairly often.
This is a view from on top of the Peaks of Sindou - one of the most beautiful areas of Burkina.
Donkey carting a load of mangoes.
Cute girl pumping water with a foot pump.
Local meat market. Beef. It's what's for dinner.

more of Mike's

2007-07-29T21:20:00.000Z

These are young Fulani girls. The Fulani are a people group with very distinct dress and jewelry - such as the nose rings seen here.
This lady is pounding the shea nuts which are seen on the group and on top of the mud thingy. I would describe the thingy as a smoker. There is a fire in the bottom and the heat rising helps to dry out the nuts. This is part of the long process of making shea butter - for those of you ladies who know what that is.
More dudes on a truck.
The guy in the middle is Amadou who, as I explained in newsletter #25, recently decided to follow Christ. Please continue to pray for him and Pastor Denis who has the task of discipling him.
This was one of the three soccer matches we played against local village teams during the ISF sports teams time here. We actually tied 1-1 this match - our best outcome. (Thanks Alaina.)

Burkina newsletter #26

2007-07-29T21:15:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! In my last newsletter I left off praising and thanking God for His protection and provision during our busy summer of ministry with volunteer teams. I didn’t say this, but in the back (or front) of my mind I was thinking that we (David – Tami – myself) are pretty important in the hosting/leading of the volunteer teams so it’s a good thing God kept us healthy all summer. Soon after I wrote/thought that I came down with malaria again. As a result there were a couple days when the volunteer team from Southside Baptist (Lufkin, TX) was without any of us in the village of Badara. (They did have two local pastors and a translator with them though.) So what happened? Did they panic or starve or get eaten by cannibals? No they did just fine, and in fact, they lead a man to the Lord. Lesson: I’m a mere servant of the Lord and He is the One capable of changing hearts so I need not overestimate my importance in His plan for the nations (1 Cor. 3:5-7). I continue to learn that the Lord works in wonderful and mysterious ways so that He gets the glory. We praise Him for how He used the volunteers from Southside (along with “independent” volunteers Ginny and Lauren) among the Sambla people.

I recently got back from Dakar, Senegal and our annual “Advance.” Advance is like a retreat only the opposite – or something like that. Actually it is the time when all the IMB missionaries of West Africa come together for fellowship, learning, and worship. At this year’s Advance I experienced such oddities as a view of the ocean, Oreos, fellowship with other young singles, air conditioning, 5-on-5 basketball (by moonlight thanks to a power outage), and worship/messages in English. The fellowship, as usual, was the highlight. We have such fine folks living amazing lives across West Africa. It is a privilege to count them as brothers and sisters.

The month of August I will be returning to the task of researching the unreached people groups of Burkina. We hope to finish our research responsibilities before the end of the year. In August we only have one volunteer coming to serve with us: EMT Chris Long. We plan to give Chris many opportunities to use his medical skills among the various people groups we’ve been working with. He will also accompany me on some research trips. I cannot yet give a detailed schedule of the month but I know that tomorrow I will head toward our border with Benin in search of the Bialaba people.

Praise God for:

* how He used the volunteers from Southside Baptist (+ Ginny and Lauren) among the Sambla and for the salvation of the man in Badara.
* the mystery and majesty of the Lord’s ways (Isaiah 55:8-9).
* for the wonderful time of fellowship He gave all of us at Advance.

Please pray:

* for the upcoming research trips: that we acquire the necessary information and encourage any pastors/believers we come in contact with.
* that God would continue to cause growth among the people groups we have planted seeds among even in our absence: the Vigue, Dogose, Komono, Senara, Turka, Tiefo, Sambla, and others (1 Cor. 3:5-7).

Thanks again for your support and prayers as we continue to aspire to preach the Gospel where Christ has not been named (Rom. 15:20). God bless!

Final thought: (how about a poem this time? OK good.)

The Blessing of Unanswered Prayers

I asked for strength that I might achieve;
I was made weak that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked for health that I might do greater things;
I was given infirmity that I might do better things.
I asked for riches that I might be happy;
I was given poverty that I might be wise.
I asked for power that I might have the praise of men;
I was given weakness that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things that I might enjoy life;
I was given life that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing that I had asked for,
but everything that I had hoped for.
Almost despite myself my unspoken prayers were answered;
I am, among all men, most richly blessed.

~Unknown Confederate soldier

interesting stuff

2007-07-04T12:26:00.001Z

Again - it never ceases to amaze me what (and who) they can pack on and in a vehicle.
Washing dishes.
Sunrise in Douna.
This is a Fulani woman who came by selling milk (in the gourd bowls on her head). The Fulani are a peculiar people group - very distinct from the others. Traditionally they are nomadic cow herders.
Grilled rat. No we didn't partake.

ISF and HBC youth

2007-07-04T12:01:00.001Z

Team ISF (International Sports Federation) plays hard. And unfortunately this little girl hasn't learned to put the "dodge" in dodgeball. Don't worry she was ok. Just a little blood and tears.
Me and ISF minus Lolly (TJ, Alaina, Pat, and Paul (left to right)).
Paul and Pastor Denis sharing the Word with Vigue man Boureima (on the left). He says he will think on what he has heard and wants to hear more next time. Please pray for him.
Hardinsburg Baptist Youth on one of the peaks of Sindou.
Cute girl braiding Alaina's hair in Dakoro.

Burkina newsletter #25

2007-07-04T11:58:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! The last line of my last newsletter was “we think we’ve got all the bases covered (speaking of logistics for the volunteer teams) but we’re not above asking from prayer either.” Little did we know. I should know by now that I/we can never have all the bases covered, unless it’s by God’s grace and help. In this case, we had a pretty good plan . . . up until Tami (1/3 of our team) received news that her father had suddenly passed away of a heart attack. We thank the Lord that Tami was able to get from the village of Sindou to Ouaga to Florida in plenty of time to be with her family for the funeral. Unfortunately this coincided with our busiest days of the year (4 teams: totaling over 30 people were with us for a couple days). Many logistical plans had to change but the most important plans did not. By the grace of God we were able to continue the ministry as planned. God provided helpers (Deron/Mary Beth/Julien/Seni) to help with transportation/translation/cooking and much more. Furthermore, throughout the whole action-packed month of June we didn’t have a single illness that caused anyone to be taken out of the village prematurely. Through this somewhat frenzied month the Lord was our “refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Ps. 46:1). I cannot say enough about His provision. We give Him praise and thanks.

So what have we done the past several weeks? In brief these four teams have ministered in five villages among several different unreached people groups. Our main goal in each village was to encourage the local churches/pastors and to aid them in their ministry. We ministered through praying for the sick and lost, playing games and loving on kids, showing the Jesus Film and “The Passion”, sharing a cultural exchange, and sharing the Gospel one-on-one. Amadou, in Ngafongo, prayed to receive Christ as his Savior. Boureima, in Karankasso-Vigue, says he wants to think more about it and hear more next time we come. Please pray for these men and the many others who have recently heard the Gospel. Pray that God will cause the growth in their lives and be glorified (1 Cor. 3:6-7).

It was truly a privilege to serve with each of the groups of the recent weeks: ISF, Davidson St. and friends, D/MB and Mike . . . but to have served with my former youth group from Hardinsburg Baptist was a special blessing. I want to especially thank Brad, Sarah, Penny, the youth and their parents, and all the members of HBC who made the trip possible. Thanks.

Currently we have two volunteers, Ginny (a returnee from last summer) and Lauren, who are wrapping up a week of ministry with Pastor Denis in Ngafongo. Tonight we welcome another returning “engaging church”: Southside Baptist from Lufkin, TX. After their previous vision trip they decided to partner with us in bringing the Gospel to the Sambla people. Southside leaves the 13^th and then Ginny and Lauren a few days later. On the 20^th I will join all other West Africa IMBers in Senegal for our annual meeting. Please pray for us to finish this summer of ministry with God’s strength.

Praise God for:

* His amazing protection and provision through a very hectic time.
* the opportunities we had to encourage, love, and share the Gospel.
* the large number of volunteers interested in working among the unreached peoples of Burkina Faso.

Please pray for:

* the seeds that were planted in so many hearts – that God would cause the growth. And that Amadou would be faithful to follow his Lord.
* the volunteers/churches who have gone back to continue to have a heart for the nations.
* the coming time of ministry among the Sambla people – that the Lord would continue to give us opportunities and courage to share the Gospel.
* God’s consolation for Tami and her family as they continue to mourn and for David as he remains separated from his wife for another week (Tami arrives back in Burkina on the 11^th).

Happy 4^th of July to my fellow Americans! I truly believe the adage “we are blessed to be a blessing.” Seek how God would have you be a blessing to the less fortunate. Thanks so much for the blessing of your prayers. God has been so good. I am thankful.

final thought:

Must I be carried to the skies on flowery beds of ease;
While other fought to win the prize and sailed through bloody seas?

~ Isaac Watts

Pics courtesy of Wade Whynot

2007-06-09T17:03:00.000Z

It's always for to see what the Burkinabe can stack on top of a vehicle.
Have you parents with young children considered getting your child a live chicken to play with? The kids love them!
If you look closely you will see that this child has a small wooden statue around his neck. This is not a fashion statement or a toy. Instead it's what the people here called a "fetish." It is bought from the local witchdoctor and is supposed to have spiritual power to protect him from evil.
Any of you teachers think your classroom is overcrowded? How about this guy who has 101 first graders in one room.
This is the mosque in Noumoukiedougou outside which (to the left under the trees) we had opportunity to share the Gospel with 80 plus Muslim men.

Burkina newsletter #24

2007-06-09T16:44:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! The volunteer carousel continues spinning. Two nights ago we welcomed the International Sports Federation (ISF) team and last night Wade Whynot left us. Wade (a volunteer All-Star) and I had a wonderful, and at the same time difficult week among the Dogose and Komono. The difficulty was not so much the conditions, although this is the region of Burkina which I consider to have the worst roads. One 50 mile stretch took us roughly 5 hours to bounce down. The physical difficulty in reaching our destinations parallels the spiritual difficulties in reaching the peoples hearts for Christ. The wonderful part of the trip is that we had numerous opportunities to share the Gospel with groups of Muslims in six different villages. In one village, Noumoukiedougou, we had set up a rendez-vous a couple days earlier. Now in West Africa one never knows what will come of a rendez-vous. In this case though we showed up in the village and were immediately taken to the local mosque where 80 or more Muslim men (including the imam, chief, and other village leaders) were sitting outside on their prayer mats waiting for us. I don’t mind to say that I was somewhat nervous walking into the encounter. Apparently not quite so much as Wade who later said he felt like Daniel being thrown into the lion’s den. Nonetheless, as we usually found to be the case, the men were very attentive as we shared about what their Koran says about Jesus and then transitioned into what the Bible has to say. In nearly two hours of dialogue, there were only a few argumentative questions but overall the messaged was well received.

Despite the satisfaction of having the privilege of sharing the Gospel with so many people we also left with sadness each time we experienced the men’s hardness to our message. It was as if it had barely affected them. Multiple times we were told “it’s all the same.” The local pastors who accompanied and translated for us said that the people realize it’s not the same. Instead that’s their polite way of saying, “Thanks for what you’ve shared. Now go in peace.” On one instance, one of the pastors pressed the issue, focusing on the need to follow Christ. He was rebuked by the imam who made it clear that their ancestors had found “this path” (Islam) and they will persevere on the path until the end. This hardness of heart and mind can only be overcome by our Lord. Still we rejoice that seeds were planted and that God’s Word will not return void. May we pray for His mercy.

Just this morning we sent off David and the ISF team to Bobo and then Sindou. On Monday night, my former youth group from Hardinsburg Baptist will arrive. After orientation and travel, we will join ISF in Sindou on Wednesday to take part in the sports ministry that they will have established. Sindou is somewhat of a crossroads of people groups. The Senufo Senara, Turka, Ble, and Natioro peoples are all found in the immediate areas. All of these peoples are in extreme need of the Gospel. Sindou itself is a very spiritually oppressive place as the nearby tourist site of fascinating rock formations is considered to have considerable spiritual power among the many animists in the area. Please pray for our interactions with the people there.

Before either Hardinsburg Baptist or ISF leaves, a third team who will enter the country on June 16^th: Davidson St. Baptist Church. They are a group of 13 who are coming on a vision trip to look into adopting either the Tiefo or Turka people groups. Meanwhile part of the ISF team will leave while others will stay for another couple weeks. There are three days during which these three groups will overlap causing numerous logistical complexities. We think we’ve got all the bases covered but we’re not above asking for prayer either.

Praise God for:

* wonderful open doors for the Word among the Dogose and Komono.
* Wade Whynot’s ministry in Burkina.
* the busyness of seeking to reach the unreached.
* the continued interest of churches like Davidson St. B.C. to make long-term commitments to engage the unengaged.
* what I’m sure will be a special visit from some of the youth from my home church.

Please pray for:

* God to grow the seeds of the Gospel planted in the hearts of the Dogose and Komono people.
* many more opportunities to share the Gospel and demonstrate God’s love in the coming weeks.
* all to work out with the logistics of this busy but exciting time.
* God’s guidance for Davidson St. Baptist as they seek His will for their participation in the Great Commission.

It is times like these that I’m all the more thankful for your prayers of support and that God is in control. God bless!

kerry spencer

final thought:

A life is not surrendered in an instant. That which is life-long can only be surrendered in a lifetime.
~ Jim Elliot

Burkina newsletter #23

2007-05-21T21:06:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! Two more successful volunteer teams have come and gone. Bartlett Baptist’s third trip to Karankasso-Vigue helped us to continue to develop new relationships and strengthen already existing ones. Still we know of no Vigue believers. Karim, the chief’s son, continues to learn about and consider Christianity but is still not ready to follow Christ. Please continue to pray for Him and the rest of the Vigue who don’t know salvation in Christ.

This weekend we said goodbye to nine students and their leaders from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. They ministered among the Lyele who are the only people group we work with that has a number of established Baptist churches. We spent about nine days visiting and encouraging these pastors and believers. We had a number of opportunities to teach in the churches, prayerwalk in the villages, and show both the Jesus Film and The Passion. In the village of Dolo, where there is no church, 29 people indicated a desire to follow Christ. Please pray for these people and the churches in the follow-up work that remains to be done in Dolo.

Up next: In the next four days I plan to squeeze in a short research trip on the Bimoba and possibly a couple other people groups of southeastern Burkina. On Friday, volunteer Wade Whynot arrives. Wade is coming having thoroughly studied a method of evangelism (the CAMEL method) specifically geared towards Muslims. The CAMEL method attempts to reason with Muslims using verses from the Koran which point to Christ and the Bible. Wade and I will travel among the Dogose and Komono peoples trying to implement this evangelistic strategy. The Dogose and Komono are mostly Islamic groups who I last visited among in December and January. Like the Vigue we still know of no believers among one of the two Komono groups. Wade, David, and I will also offer a training session for pastors in the Bobo area to try to share this method of evangelism.

As Wade leaves on June 8^th we will welcome two more volunteer groups. One is a group from the International Sports Federation and the other is the youth group from my home church, Hardinsburg Baptist. I’m super excited about seeing those kids again. I hope to write again before they arrive to give you the heads up on what they’ll be doing as well as an update on my time with Wade using the CAMEL method. In the meantime . . .

Praise God for:

* Bartlett Baptist, the students from UMHB, Wade Whynot and the many other volunteers who are coming to make an eternal impact here in Burkina.
* the response to the Gospel in the village of Dolo.
* relative health and safety for all of us in recent weeks.

Please pray for:

* God to break through among the Vigue people.
* the Lyele pastors and churches as they attempt to be lights for the Lord, particularly in the follow up work in Dolo.
* Wade and I was we attempt to share the Gospel with Dogose and Komono Muslims. “Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation” (Romans 10:1).

As always, thanks so much for you prayer support and interest in the unreached peoples of Burkina Faso. God bless!

kerry spencer

final thought:

We are unlike the Christians of New Testament times. Our approach to life is conventional and static; theirs was not. The thought of “safety first” was not a drag on their enterprise as it is on ours. By being exuberant, unconventional and uninhibited in living by the gospel they turned their world upside down, but you could not accuse us twentieth-century Christians of doing anything like that.

~J.I. Packer

Greek pics

2007-04-29T11:54:00.000Z

The Parthenon on the Acropolis at night (in case you couldn't tell).
This is a view of Athens and a theater on our way up the Acropolis.
This is the southern tip of mainland Greece. On top are the ruins of a temple to Poseidon - God of the Sea.
This is a view from Delphi on the Peloponnese (the large island or peninsula of southern Greece). Most of the green seen below is olive trees.
This is an area called Meteora in central Greece. Back around the 11th century some monks decided these huge rock towers would be good places to build their monasteries. They built more than 20 monasteries like the one you see here but only 6 remain.

Turkish pics

2007-04-29T11:32:00.000Z

This is Cappadocia which is such a difficult place to explain. It is 100-some square miles of incredibly beautiful and unique landscape. Way back in the day, people decided to carve their houses and churches into these odd rock formations. They also built underground cities. Many people still live in these cave-houses. Early Christians found this to be a good place to practice in secret. Hundreds of ancient churches have been found in the area. Peter wrote to the believer in Cappadocia and it is also mentioned in Acts 2:9.
Istanbul is spread over two continents: Asia and Europe. You are looking at the Europe side which contains the Blue mosque on the left and the Hagia Sophia on the right. Both are very impressive buildings. The Hagia Sophia was a church built in the 500's but was later converted into a mosque. This picture was taken from a boat which I took back and forth several times. The straight in between is called the Bosphorus.
This is a lady hand-weaving one of the carpets for which the country is well-known.
This is the inside of one of the cave-houses of Cappadocia (Goreme actually). We were invited here by a nice, old lady who was surprised and excited that my friends could speak Turkish. We were given some apple tea and a warm welcome.
Just one of many very impressive mosques in Istanbul.

Casablanca, Morocco

2007-04-29T11:17:00.000Z

Young fella selling fresh olives and pickled things in a local market. They love their olives around the Mediterranean.
Some of the many carpets beings sold at the Habous market.
The Hassan II mosque is the second largest religious monument in the world - just behind the one in Mecca. It is one of the few touristic sights in Casa.
Some arches at the mosque.
A rather large door of the mosque. I'm the little guy in grey and blue by the potted plant.

Burkina newsletter #22

2007-04-29T11:06:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! I’m back after about 3 weeks of vacationing in Morocco, Greece, and Turkey. I had a great time! It was wonderful to spend a week with my parents, visit some old friends in new environments (Casablanca and Istanbul), and to see some more of God’s amazing creation. I am so blessed to have had this opportunity to travel and visit. I wish I could tell you all about it, but this is not a travel guide. (If I have time I might share some more here later.) However I will share a few of the spiritually significant aspects of the trip. I was told that in Morocco there are less than 1000 believers and it is officially illegal to convert to Christianity. Greece is 97% Orthodox Christian, however, from my short experience I noticed many practices which stray from Biblical Christianity. Lastly, though this is not typical of the country, while I was in Turkey, three believers were tortured and had their throats slit. Turkey is officially a secular state, yet statistics say 99.8% of the population is Muslim. All these people and places need our prayers.

So, back to Burkina . . . I neglected to mention that a volunteer team came to work alongside David and Tami while I was on vacation. Southside Baptist (Lufkin, TX) had a great vision trip among several of the people groups we’ve been promoting. They are now in prayer over which group they will adopt and when they will return. Praise God for them and please pray with them for God’s guidance.

The volunteer marathon is upon us. On May 1^st, David, Tami, and I will return to Karankasso-Vigue with a couple more volunteers from Bartlett Baptist (TN). There we’ll have a chance to follow up with Karim and Noufou who you’ve heard much about in previous newsletters. We also hope to continue to spread the word to other’s who’ve not yet heard. Then on May 8^th we are joined by another team (FBC Belton, TX and U. of Mary Hardin-Baylor) who will minister among the Lyele (lay-lay) and also do some teaching at our Baptist seminary in Koudougou. There are several more teams to come who you will hear about in due time.

Praise God for:

* a wonderful vacation spent with my parents and friends.
* Southside, Bartlett, and Belton Baptist churches for their interest in the unreached peoples of West Africa.

Please pray for:

* both the lost and the believers in oppressive places in the world.
* Southside Baptist as they seek the Lord’s guidance on how to minister with us here in Burkina.
* us along with Bartlett Baptist and FBC Belton as we seek to share the “glorious Gospel of the blessed God” (1 Tim. 1:11).

Again I am so thankful for my time away but it’s good to be back in Burkina and to know of your prayer for us here. God bless!

kerry spencer

final though:

We shall not cease from exploration and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.

~T.S. Eliot

This is the way I’ve felt since arriving back in Burkina. My short time away has allowed me to notice the peculiarities of Burkina afresh. I feel like I’m in Africa again. I notice more the oddities of donkey carts on the city roads, random objects (sewing machines, chairs, etc) carried on people’s heads, the local music, and much more. I know Burkina (and Kentucky) better for have visited those other counties. I am also more thankful for the freedom we have in this country to share the Gospel and the freedom (at least legally speaking) for people to accept it.

More random Burkina pics

2007-04-02T15:32:00.000Z

These are just some more pics I pulled out of the "random Burkina pics" folder for your viewing enjoyment. This is a stained glass window in a Catholic church in rural Burkina. Certainly not a common sight I assure you.
This is a fun picture because you see 1) the bold and precarious loading of an average bush taxi and 2) the competition of the local concession sellers to get the business of the passengers.
Me between a couple of the roots of a Kapok tree. Kapoks are known for these huge, leg-like roots that form the base of the trunk.
This is my favorite little neighbor kid, Mai. I won't lie, she's quite fond of this "Tubabu" (white person). Ever time my gate is open she'll just wander in. The chair she's in is made solely of palm fronds and a few strips of animal hide to tie things together. It cost me a whole $3.
I never cease to be amazed at what people will carry on their motos/bicycles/cars/heads/etc.

Burkina newsletter #21

2007-04-02T15:26:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! The last couple weeks have been fairly slow for a change. The Woods and I have been doing some planning for the seven volunteer teams who will come between now and mid-July. David and I are making another trip tomorrow to make further plans with some pastors for two of those teams. Please continue to pray for God’s guidance as we plan for all these teams.

Last time I was in Ouagadougou (our capital) I got an unexpected call from an old friend from my first term in Burkina. Ouahabou was one of the high school students I was closest too during my two years in the Bissa village of Torla. Those of you where were keeping up with me back then probably prayed for him. At the time, he told me that he believed the Gospel and the Bible stories we taught him and the others, however he was not able to openly follow Christ for fear of what his Muslim family might do to him. Again, this is a very common story in Burkina and is probably the greatest barrier to people following Christ. Nonetheless, Ouahabou is now a university student in Ouaga and says he finally feels the freedom to follow Christ openly. I have also heard that another of those young men from Torla, Yaya, has left the village and is a committed believer. That God has continued to work in these young peoples lives is such an encouragement to me. These stories also reinforce the reality that the Lord does not always work at the pace we would like – but He works according to His perfect plans. We should all remember this lesson as we continue to pray for the unengaged peoples of West Africa and individuals like Karim, Noufou, the Karaboro chief, and others I have mentioned in these newsletters.

Speaking of Noufou – I believe I last mentioned him in newsletter #12 – he came to visit me in Bobo last week. He is a young Mossi (the dominant people in Burkina) man who happens to live in Karankasso-Vigue where we’ve gone to minister several times. He now professes to believe in Jesus as His Savior. He has begun going to church in the evenings without his Muslim father’s knowledge and against his wishes. He is beginning to take steps to follow Christ. Please pray for Him to have courage to continue to follow Christ and that He would grow in his faith and knowledge.

In weather news: It rained for the first time since October! This was just a teaser though. We’ve still got hot season to go through before the rains really come. Already most days reach around 105 F or more.

Early Friday morning I leave Burkina for vacation. I’m going to Morocco for a couple days and then on to Greece and Turkey for about a week each. I’m very excited to get to be with my parents for a week in Greece and I have friends to visit with in Morocco and Turkey. I’m very blessed to have these opportunities for exploration, visitation, and relaxation.

I hope all of you have a blessed Easter as we remember the sacrifice and resurrection of our Savior. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” 1 Peter 1:3

Praise God:

* that His ways are not our ways (Is. 55:8) and that He is at work even when we do not recognize it.
* for the sacrifice and hope-giving resurrection of His only Son, and our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Please pray for:

* God’s guidance in our continued planning and preparation for future volunteer teams.
* Ouahabou and Noufou as they seek to follow Christ despite the opposition of their families. Pray for courage, faith, and a growing knowledge of God.
* a blessed time of vacation and visiting family and friends.

As always, thanks so much for your prayers and support. Be encouraged that God continues to work and answer prayers, sometimes even long after we’ve forgotten that we prayed them. God bless!

Final thought:

The greatest use of a life is to spend it on something that will outlast it.
~William James

Music, mangoes, and more

2007-03-19T11:38:00.000Z

Here are a couple guys playing on a traditional balofon (West African cousin of the xylophone). The bars are made of wood. Under the bars are some gourds of various sizes with a hole chopped out of the top to allow for resonation.
Here are some rock stars who came to visit recently. Get it? "Rock" stars. Anyway. These are the three guys from Compassion Church who recently came on a vision trip (sorry - other team member Sam is not pictured). The guy on the top left is a Burkinabe pastor who we've partnered with for quite a while. These rocks are part of one of the coolest places in Burkina. They're called the Peaks of Sindou.
Have I shown you the cashew fruit yet? If not here it is. These things grow on short little trees. The yellowish-red part is edible though I'm not surprise it is not as popular as the nut. The green part is supposedly poisonous. Interestingly that's where the nut is found.
Here's a little guy fishing for a mango. Those are the little green things hanging from the tree. Think about this. It has not rained a drop here since October, yet the mango is coming ripe and is one of the juiciest fruits there is. How does that work?
Just a fun flower I saw recently. Check out the thorny stem on the left.

Burkina newsletter #20 (special one-year edition)

2007-03-16T13:20:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! Bartlett Baptist Church had a positive second trip to Karankasso-Vigue. They made known to the chief their commitment to return to the village periodically. The chief is still very open and seems genuinely happy about their commitment. We are continuing to build new relationships and are strengthening old ones. Team members were bold in sharing the Gospel on several occasions. Karim (one of the chief’s sons) told us that he is very close to choosing to follow Christ and that he knows others who are in the same boat. He admits that the problem is that no one wants to be the first. Karim told us “when I’m in – I want to be all in.” He and others are counting the cost. Please pray that God will give Karim and other Vigue the courage to take the step to follow Christ.

Compassion Church of Raleigh has come and gone as well. During their vision trip we visited with the Turka, Senufo Senara, Sambla, and Western Karaboro peoples. The first stop was the Western Karaboro village of Tengrela where the chief had formerly told us that we would need to provide a sheep and chicken for them to sacrifice if we were to spend significant time in their village. When we arrived we greeted the chief and he repeated his ultimatum. We repeated our conviction that we could not contribute to their sacrifices. We mentioned that we had a doctor in the group and that he could take a look at some people if there are any health problems. Of course there is no lack of those in the village and the chief was OK with the idea. After some time of the doctor treating various ailments we decided we would leave since we were still not officially welcome in the village. We told the chief we would pass by again at the end of the week. At the second meeting the chief reluctantly gave the OK for us to come again and stay longer (without bringing animals to sacrifice). Still the situation is quite tenuous. Thank the Lord for this small opening of a “door for the word” (Col. 4:3) and pray the door will be opened wider. Please pray for Compassion Church as they seek how they are to minister here in Burkina.

Currently we have an old friend and a new one visiting us. Tiffany Folse formerly served in Burkina as a Journeyman (2-year missionary) with the Woods. She is accompanied by her friend Tylina. While here they will visit Tiffany’s old stomping grounds and then see some of the areas we’ve been seeking to minister in. After their departure the Woods and I will be on our own again, for a few weeks anyway.

As another year in Burkina has come and gone (as of March 3) I have been able to reflect a little. I will simply say that God has been so good to protect me, sustain me, teach me, and use me here. I am so unworthy to be His servant much less His child. I thank God for shepherding me on this adventure of ministry. I pray that He will be exalted among the nations. And He will be. (Psalm 46:10)

Praise God for:

* calling and sending more laborers, churches like Bartlett Baptist and Compassion Church, to play their part in the Great Commission.
* the return visit of Tiffany and the first for Tylina.
* another wonderful year in West Africa.

Please pray for:

* the Lord to continue to draw Karim and the Vigue people to Himself. Pray that He will give them the courage and faith to follow Him.
* God to guide Compassion Church as they seek their place of service in Burkina.
* God to be exalted among the Turka, Senufo Senara, Sambla, and Western Karaboro peoples.

Thank your for your interest in me and more importantly the unreached peoples of West Africa. Thank you so much for your prayer support. And now in honor of another year in Africa, a new feature for the newsletter: the final thought (see below) –

An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered.
An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered.

~ G.K. Chesterton

Kids and caterpillars

2007-03-03T18:29:00.000Z

Everybody loves kiddy pics!

Yes fried caterpillars are considered a delicacy in parts of Burkina Faso. They had a decent flavor but the texture is hard to overcome - not to mention the thought of what you're eating.

We be jammin' - on our tin cans.

Burkina newsletter #19

2007-02-17T16:59:00.001Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! Sam and I had a good 10 days in Ghana to wrap up his time in West Africa. There we found some areas which were extremely evangelized: about 20 denominations in one town. We found other areas with only one denomination ministering among an entire people group: the Sisaala. The Sisaala are largely unreached by the Gospel. Pray that God will send more laborers into the harvest among them.

The past couple weeks I’ve been writing reports on the eight people groups we’ve recently researched, writing evaluations of our volunteers, paying bills, making arrangements in villages for our future volunteers, catching up on email and college basketball, and cleaning the dust out of my house – none of which make for a very thrilling newsletter. However it might be good information for those of you who might think my life is all waterfalls, road trips, and safaris. Now back to the good stuff.

On Monday we will welcome back Bartlett Baptist Church (Tenn.). They are our first “Engaging Church” and have adopted the Vigue people. You may remember that I spent several weeks among the Vigue from June-September with 3 different teams (the last being the first Bartlett team). This team will spend Feb. 21-28 with the Vigue. Besides continuing to build relationships and share the Gospel with individuals, we also hope to show the Jesus Film this time. We still know of no Christians among the Vigue, but we hope you will pray with us that that changes soon.

On March 2^nd the Bartlett team leaves and the next day a team from Compassion Church (Raleigh) arrives. They are coming on a vision trip to look into adopting a people group like Bartlett has done. We plan to expose them to several unreached groups in southwestern Burkina. One of the groups we are hoping to introduce them to is the Western Karaboro, who, like the Vigue, have no known Christians. I recently went to their main village called Tengrela to explain to their leaders that we have some strangers/volunteers who want to come spend some time in their village learning their language and sharing with them about God. This is usually simply a formality to give them a heads up. We are regularly welcomed with open arms. However on this occasion I was told by an elder that we can only come on one condition. It is their custom to make sacrifices whenever visitors are coming so that all will go well with them. On top of this he expected that we would provide the sheep and chicken for the sacrifices. I made it known that our beliefs would not allow us to contribute to their sacrifices. Even after another conversation with him, he did not back down from his condition. Still we plan to at least stop in to greet these people. Please pray “that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ.” (Colossians 4:3)

Praise God for:

* Sam and his willingness to spend such a large chunk of time helping us with our research and ministry.

* the vision and willingness of Bartlett Baptist and Compassion Church to be a part of the Great Commission.

Please pray for:

* the Lord to send laborers into the harvest among the Sisaala people of Ghana.

* the Bartlett team’s time among the Vigue – that God will help us “to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel” (Ephesians 6:19) and that He would bring salvation to the Vigue (Romans 10:1).

* God to guide Compassion Church in finding their place of service in West Africa.

* the Western Karaboro people – “that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ.” (Colossians 4:3)

Thanks so much for your prayers for me and more importantly the unreached peoples of West Africa. The Lord is sending laborers and He will reap the harvest in due time. God bless!

Weird stuff

2007-02-04T16:18:00.000Z

When kids don't have playstations, G.I. Joe's, or whatever's the hip toy . . . they make stuff up: like this soccer ball made of scraps of cloth and this decorative headband made of an empty medicine strip and a plastic string.

So we were in Ghana at a decent hotel and this is what we found on the menu. I was delighted and proud. Of course I ordered it. It was good but not quite like the Colonel's. 46,000 Cedis might sound a little steep, but that's about $5.

So this is not such a strange sight any more. It seems every time I go to the Nazinga game park (3 or 4 times now I'd guess) we get charged by an elephant. Yeah it was pretty close and gave us a good trumpet sound.

A tree growing up/out of/inside a wall. The wall happens to be part of an ancient fortress near Loropeni (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loropeni)- one of Burkina's little tourist sites. Nobody know when the fortress was built.

Camels on a bridge in Burkina.

Things volunteers do for fun:

2007-01-31T21:47:00.000Z

This is our Christmas feast, almost entirely prepared by Master Chef Meagan (who's in the headband and probably wishes I'd picked a more flattering photo). With the poorest of resources she proved to be incredibly resourceful. We were truly astounded and grateful.
This is what happens when the kids (like Troy here) step out of line. That's an elephant leg bone from the game park we got to visit. Yeah it's real and heavy. We saw live elephants too. Pics later.
This is a shot of all the vols I got to host through most of Dec/Jan. We were only all together for about 3 days while some were coming and some going. From left to right: Sam ("Judge"); Mark (just Mark); Stephen ("the question"); Paul ("Asteroid"); Meagan (the girl); Troy ("Fatback"); and me ("Chief").
This was not an uncommon thing for me to see in my rear view mirror. Lazy punks. Just jokes. It's more funny cause only Asteroid and I knew I took the picture.
Here we are trying to introduce the Africans to bobsledding. I know what you're think and yes Africans could fit 8 in a bobsled. Actually we were just helping a guy who was stuck in the sand. Or at least I was helping for a while before I stopped to take this pic.

Dogose/Komono religions

2007-01-18T21:59:00.000Z

This is a pastor (standing on far right) and some church members having an impromptu praise session at our request. We were doing some research and video work in the Dogose village of Bawe. This is one of only two churches with a significant number of Dogose believers. There are no such churches among the Komono.
We witnessed the Muslim celebration of Tabaski in the Komono town of Mangodara. This is part of the five times per day Muslim prayer ritual. (See newsletter below for more details)
You can't tell but the small crowd of people huddled up are the guys helping the local iman sacrifice the ram for their celebration. Since this is a family show I didn't figure you needed any more detail.
Again this is part of the Muslim prayer ritual, supposed to be repeated five times per day.
This dirt pillar is a typical family fetish. A fetish is essentially a physical object which the animists believe has spiritual/supernatural powers. Some people have smaller fetishes which they keep inside but this one is for a whole family. We were told by the "owner" that they make sacrifices to it to ask for things like good rains and a good harvest at the beginning of planting season. They also make sacrifices of thanks whenever they get what they asked for. The feathers and dark blood streaks are from their most recent chicken sacrifice.

Burkina newsletter #18

2007-01-18T21:35:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! It’s been a few good weeks since I last wrote. The latest trio of volunteers (Meagan – Paul – Troy) has all returned home leaving Sam and I. Their first week we traveled some more among the Dogose and Komono groups taking video as we went. Meagan is going to produce a “virtual prayerwalk” on disk for those peoples. (I hope to tell you how you can get a hold of that when it is finished.) The Lord allowed us to see some remarkable but sad things during our time. At one point we encountered a man and his fetish while strolling through a village. A fetish is essentially a physical object which the animists believe has spiritual powers. In this case the fetish was a mound of dirt/mud with a clay pot on top and “secret stuff” inside. We could see dried chicken blood and feathers from their most recent sacrifice to the fetish. It was a sad, visible reminder of their often secret devotion to this sort of religion. (see Isaiah 44:9-20 on this issue)

We also were allowed to witness and video the Muslim holy day of Tabaski (know elsewhere as Eid al-Adha and Eid al-Kabir). This is their celebration of when God provided a ram instead of having Abraham sacrifice his son. This happened to fall on New Years Eve this year. The celebration as we witnessed it included a huge gathering for one of their regular morning prayer times (around 9 AM). Then there was apparently a little “preaching” (couldn’t understand what was being said). Afterwards the imam sacrificed a ram. Everyone was then free to go home and sacrifice their own ram. Sadly these people do not realize that Jesus is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29)

After these travels among the Dogose/Komono Meagan left. The rest of us then completed some more research – this time on the Nuna and one of three types of Bwaba. I’m glad to say that the Bwaba are one of the most evangelized peoples that I’ve encountered. The Nuna also have many churches in their area though they still do not have a large percentage of Christians among them.

Sam and I a planning to wrap up his time here with a research trip to Ghana. Since they speak English there he will be doing much of the research himself – leaving me as the chauffeur.

Praise God for:
* health/safety/good fellowship throughout these volunteers’ time in Burkina.
* sending these student volunteers to serve with us in Burkina.

Please pray for:
* the Dogose and Komono people groups – that they would be freed from their slavery to fetishes and false religions.
* Meagan as she produces the virtual prayerwalk disk for the Komono/Dogose.
* the upcoming research trip Ghana.

As always thank you for your prayers and support. Happy 2007!

kerry spencer

Burkina newsletter #17

2006-12-22T01:27:00.000Z

Seasons Greetings from Burkina Faso! First, some thoughts on Christmas: E.B. White wrote books about talking animals. He also said “To perceive Christmas through its wrapping becomes more difficult with every year.” I think he’s right; at least when I consider the American “wrappings.” As I mentioned last newsletter there are almost no wrappings here in Burkina Faso. There’s the occasional random sight of street vendors selling artificial Christmas trees and the local grocery store (run by Lebanese) decorated with Christmas lights. I recently was in downtown Bobo and was pestered by a little boy selling postcards. Just for fun I asked if he had any Christmas cards. He said “oh of course” and began thumbing through. He pulled out one with a girl carrying carrots on her head. He said “cause there are lots of carrots during Christmas time.” It’s true actually. He was funny and persistent so I bought the carrot-head-Christmas-card. So the point is there’s virtually no Christmas season here. And that’s OK because it challenges us as Christians to discover how important Jesus’ birth really is to us. We must remind ourselves about the story and make time to worship the Messiah. And we do. The challenges in America and Burkina are similar but different. Either way we have to give the celebration of Immanuel’s birth our attention and effort in order to make it meaningful. He is certainly worthy of that.

Well I suppose the gig is up by now. My supervisors, David and Tami, went home to surprise their family for Christmas (as well as take a couple short seminary courses and speak in some churches). They’ll be back here in February. That means I’m alone in assisting the volunteers we currently have here. Nonetheless Sam, Mark, Stephen, and I had a safe and beneficial time traveling among the Dogose/Komono peoples. I was reminded of how undeveloped and unreached the area is. I must say I have quite a burden for the people of that region. They need so much (roads/schools/health facilities/drinkable water), but most of all they need salvation in Jesus Christ. According to our research these people are around 0.003% Christian. Still on one occasion we managed to “run into” one of those Christians by stopping at a random little shop on the side of the road. It’s fun serving a sovereign Lord. Just after Christmas I’ll be going back to the region with Sam, Troy, Paul, and Meagan. One thing we’ll be doing differently is taking some video footage to produce a “virtual prayerwalk” (you may hear more about that later). Please join us in praying for the Dogose and Komono peoples that they would come to know the Jesus who “is the image of the invisible God”(Col. 1:15) and “the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature”(Heb. 1:3).

For those wondering what I’ll be doing for Christmas: We plan to attend Christmas Eve services at a church in Ouaga. Then the Haber family (IMB missionaries in Bobo) have invited us (myself and our four volunteers) to celebrate with them. I look forward to the joyous day.

“Because of the tender mercy of our God, with which the Sunrise from on high will visit us, to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” Luke 1:78-79

Praise God:

* for Christian family to celebrate Christmas with while away from my family in Kentucky.

* the volunteers who God has sent during this time (Mark and Paul leaving on Saturday; Sam, Paul, Troy, and Meagan staying through Christmas and New Years).

* the birth of the Messiah.

Please pray for:

* the Dogose and Komono peoples – that God would open up to us a door for the word among them.

* me to be a good chauffeur, translator, teacher, leader, and servant for our volunteers.

Thanks so much for you continued prayers for me and the unreached peoples of West Africa. God bless and have a joyful Christmas!

Travels among Dogose and Komono

2006-12-19T22:36:00.000Z

Here is our team who traveled/researched among the Komono/Dogose: Sam in front; then from left to right: Stephen – Pastor Denis – Mark. The guide is in back and those lumps in the water are our friends the hippos. This was a little tourist sight we were able to take in on our way.
This was part of the cotton harvest for one of the pastors we visited. We took a little time to pick some ourselves. I guess I can never again argue if someone calls me a “cotton picker.”
This is a picture I’ve been trying to get for a long time. Believe it or not this is a fairly regular sight on the highways. We simply call him “the chicken man.” Yes they’re alive. I wonder if this is how KFC transports their birds.
Just liked the sight of this young boy intently reading his Bible in church. He can play a mean beat on the djembe (drum) too.
We came upon this village and stopped to ask some questions. We were greeted by this touching scene. This is a believer from a nearby village who is teaching these kids (for no money) reading/writing/arithmetic since this village has no school and there is none nearby.

Burkina newsletter #16

2006-12-08T09:59:00.000Z

Greetings from Burkina Faso! I had a wonderful Thanksgiving and an enjoyable time in Togo for our Re-new conference. I am blessed to have such a great missionary family: both in Bobo and scatter across West Africa.

I have often asked you to pray Luke 10:2 with us: “Pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” I praise God that He is answering that prayer. Recently we have been receiving messages seemingly every day from new people who are interested in serving among the unengaged peoples of Burkina Faso. We have already scheduled six groups for the first six months of 2007 and are still trying to make plans with several others (but there’s still room for you). God is calling and sending laborers and we are thankful.

That is not to mention the four college/seminary students who are coming this month. Due to the groups coming next year we have some work to do in preparing the way for them. That is largely what we will be doing this month and next. On the 11th we welcome two more volunteers: Mark (a buddy from seminary) and Stephen. They will join Sam and me in traveling/researching/ministering among four of the least evangelized people groups in Burkina Faso. These are four different, but related peoples in far southwestern Burkina who (for simplicity’s sake) we will call the Komono peoples. (I would refer you to Newsletter #4 if you want to read up again on the Komono – who I was calling the Dogose at the time.) According to our previous research these four micro-peoples total only about 35,000, and we know of only about 30 believers among them. We found them to be almost exclusively Muslim - of course with some traditional religion (animism) mixed in. Our purpose on this trip will be to learn more about the Komono peoples (as they are a very complex group of peoples) and to seek out where would be best for us to plug in volunteers for ministry among them. Of course, if the opportunity presents itself we would love to begin sharing the Gospel even on this trip. Please pray for that. As Paul requested: “praying at the same time for us as well that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ . . . that I may make it clearly in the way I ought to speak” (Col. 4:3-4)

The 20th – 23rd we will have a transition time with this group leaving on the 23rd and another group of two (or possibly three) arriving on the 20th. With this second group (Troy and Paul) we are planning to continue our work among the Komono and then begin preparing the way for some more work in a different area of the country. Of course, we will also be celebrating Christmas on the 25th. I hope those of you in the States have a very meaningful and joyful Christmas season. Here in Burkina Faso there is no Christmas “season,” only Christmas. Though this may seem a little sad in some respects it personally helps me to focus on the bare truths in the story of Immanuel.

While speaking of the Christmas season, I want to speak briefly to you Southern Baptists. It is this time of year that you give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. Know that 100% of that offering goes directly to the IMB to support people like me (well, mostly people a lot better than me). I am deeply grateful for your gifts which make it possible for me to be here serving the Messiah. I am truly blessed through your generosity.

Praise God:

* a time of refreshing in Togo.
* that He is sending laborers into His harvest.
* the birth of our Messiah.

Please pray for:

* the Komono peoples – that God would open up to us a door for the word among them.
* us to make the best use of the volunteers who will join us in the coming days/weeks/months to reach the unreached.

Thanks so much for you continued prayers for me and the unreached peoples of West Africa. God bless and Merry Christmas!

Niger pics

2006-11-16T19:30:00.000Z

Our guide to the desert (Sali) is doing his part to fight desertification.
This was the one time we got seriously stuck in the sand. After about 30 minutes of digging we were free and on our way. The gentleman with the automatic weapon was a military guy hitching a ride. It's hard to say no to a guy with a firearm.
Some say Niger has the last herd of giraffes in West Africa. Here's evidence.
Sali again posing
So Sam told Nehemiah (our guide/interpreter) that he'd like to ride a camel sometime. Next time we saw a guy on a camel, Nehemiah flagged him down. Up Sam went.