Editor’s Note: This article is the third of a six-part series on God’s call and discernment. The first two articles were published in the January and March 2021 issues. The first article by Nancy Friesen (January 2021) was not labelled as part of the series.
MEXICO – Our call to missions as a couple is the same call every disciple of Jesus has received to be a witness of his love (2 Corinthians 5:17–21, Matthew 28:18–20, Acts 1:8). The differences are the locations where we live that out and the specific ways God asks us to serve him. That being said, our personal story began before my wife and I met. Continue reading God’s Call to Mission When a Door Closes→
Editor’s Note: This article is the second of a six-part series on God’s call and discernment. The first article by Nancy Friesen (not labelled as part of the series) was published in the January 2021 issue.
In my previous mission assignment I was given an illustration to discern God’s call. Like a ship coming in to port should line up three lights to dock safely, so Christians need to line up three lights to discern God’s will: the Word, the church leaders and the voice of the Spirit. The agreement of these three reaffirmed the direction I sensed. But now, married with children, I found more lights to consider. Continue reading Discerning God’s Call to Missions: Responding to God’s Call as a Family→
2020 is the year of COVID, quarantines, working from home, financial struggles, health problems, loss of loved ones and all sorts of turmoil. As we come to the end of this year, many of us have stories of disappointments, missed opportunities, and intense grief from our losses, but we also have stories of God’s faithfulness and his abundant provision. Here is our story:
“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jeremiah 29:11).
What is God’s calling for my life? This question is a source of mystery, frustration and confusion. Does God really have a detailed plan for each one of us, or is God’s call more general, with the details left up to us? Continue reading Call to Mission in Bolivia→
GERMANY – Let me tell you about a time I was almost famous.
A few years ago, some of my friends and I made a YouTube channel. For a year we wrote and produced a short video every two weeks. We tried westerns, we tried superheroes, we dabbled in comedic horror and bad puns. Some of it was funny; everything was original.
UGANDA/SOUTH SUDAN – The people of South Sudan have witnessed incredible violence, fled their homes, and suffered immensely because of lack of food, clean water, and shelter. Many continue to suffer or are paralyzed with fear and poverty. Serving South Sudan will bring a church planting model that promotes, sustainable development to grassroots communities providing clean drinking water, economic empowerment, social integration, church empowerment, and education.
GERMANY – Let me tell you about the time that I didn’t see a fox. It was a Saturday after a long, hot week of German language school. I was really looking forward to it because Ted, Freddy and I had planned to get together and go over our plans to film our latest film project, The Josephine Project. Normally we don’t work on Saturdays, but between language school and travel plans this was the best day. So I hopped on my bicycle and biked to the office.
Blumenort, Man. How do you celebrate a lifetime of service in cross-cultural ministry? What is an appropriate response to those who have sacrificed so much in service to the mission of the Church? This September, EMC Missions attempted to do just this, as we recognized Paul and Lois Thiessen for their ministry of Church Planting through Bible Translation for the Siamou people in Burkina Faso. Continue reading Missionary Fellowship and Recognition Banquet→
Blumenort, Man. We took affordable air travel for granted. Each year for decades, the number of passengers traveling by air has increased significantly. Many of us in Canada have benefited from this affordable and available travel for work or vacation. But the applecart has been upset by the arrival of the coronavirus. Continue reading Barbeque Celebration for Missionaries→
West Asia-Kings are not loved by the Mountain people. Until the early 1970s, they lived under a monarchy. The kings were not kind. They taxed the people heavily and forced them into labour building roads, canals, and terraced fields. In one village, an elder reported to me that each year he had to pay the king seven or eight goats, bushels of wheat and potatoes, and large quantities of butter. Whatever the people produced, that was taken, so that they were only left with what they could hide in secret holes and caves in the mountains. When the monarchy was dissolved and the area was folded into the rest of the country, the people rejoiced. “All of that is finished now,” he told me. “Now things are easier, praise God!” Continue reading Kings and The King→
A publication of the Evangelical Mennonite Conference
