loveminneapolis247.com

Our comfort zone is gaining new territory.

Love Minneapolis 24/7 is an evangelistic push going on in the city all this week, from 6/21-6/28. There are 28 outreaches planned for the 8 days, one every six hours, all week long, with the final outreach being concurrent with the Gay Pride Parade on Sunday. At this outreach last year on the same Sunday 80 people with sexual brokenness received Jesus. 80 from the LGBTQ community! LoveMPLS is backed by mandatory training and 24/7 worship and intercession. And we went.
 
Actually, it was mandatory for Renée as part of her School of Ministry Development. (Which ends tomorrow!!! Tonight (6/25) is her Commissioning Night. 7 pm right here at YWAM Minneapolis. All are welcome to attend!) So yes, Renée didn't have much choice in the matter, but we thought it would be good for the whole family to join her class. Street evangelism, why not? We are being trained as missionaries, right? Renée's spent a few Friday afternoons in this school out in the parks and malls looking for people to pray for or share the Gospel with. She wouldn't say it's gone all that well or that she's even enjoyed it. Just being honest.

So, 9 am we arrived at an Alliance Church, which they calling the Firebase for LOVEMPLS. There was a 45 minute briefing held with Hans L. who would be our outreach leader and the 40 other 'messengers' we were to go out on the streets with. Hans asked if there were any worship leaders among us. I raised my hand. He asked if I had an instrument along. I'd felt led to bring my guitar, so yes I was now to lead a 'flash mob' worship time once we got to the streets. (Which is cool because I'm planning on taking my Worship Focus students in this Fall's DTS out for some worship evangelism, and I need practice!)

Following the briefing was 2 hours of worship and 'consecration' time to prepare our hearts to go out. Knowing that would be too long for the kids we brought UNO and some snacks. Our friend Christine, Renée's mentor, offered to hang out with the kids so she could stay in the worship time. Does two hours seem a little long? Not to me anymore.  The real work of evangelism belongs to the Holy Spirit. Prayer and worship is how we come into alignment with Him, allowing Him to remove anything that would hinder us from hearing His voice as we go out to talk to people. We'd be on the streets for 2 hours. So 2 hours of heart preparation seems reasonable to me. (The worship leading is going on night and day ALL WEEK, with new leaders setting up as the previous one finishes every two hours, night and day.)

After the worship time we loaded into our vans and drove downtown, paid $20 for parking because there was a Twins game last night, and walked 4 blocks to Nicolett Ave just at the noon hour. I pulled out my guitar and led all 40 of us in It Is Well right on the busy street corner. Someone suggested I Love You Lord, then another Bless the Lord and we finished up with Set A Fire (gotta have something for this younger generation too!) People walking mostly skirted us, rather than taking the lane we'd made through the middle of our group. After the singing we dispersed in groups of 2, with the exception of our family of 6.

This is when it got awkward. Now what? We sang a song that I wrote for the kids at Cornerstone and the kids and Renée did the actions. Really awkward. The kids were armed with Revive Twin Cities Bibles and bracelets. Rachel was very eager to tell someone about Jesus, but we didn't really know what to do. Renée doesn't like being in the city, especially with the kids. We were hungry and getting testy. We walked back to the van and put my guitar away, crossed the street to a pharmacy to find they didn't have public restrooms.  Well, lets find a place to eat. Qdoba? What's this Lunch Cube down the block, or hey, the Dancing Ganeesha, maybe we'll meet some people from India to talk to. Nope. The server was from Ecuador and our hostess was Persian, from Iran. Tried to make conversation with them but it didn't go very far. The food was amazing though. Then we wandered down the street to Loring Park where they were setting up tents and booths for the Pride celebration. Tried to talk to an older couple on a park bench. No, they didn't want prayer for anything. Couldn't find a playground for the kids and there wasn't enough time to cross over to the Sculpture Garden so we prayed for the Pride Parade outreach and started back toward the van taking a different route. As we were walking Rachel told me she'd seen a lady give her life to Jesus while we were singing back at the beginning.  "That's cool," I said. Rachel has a tendency to see more than is really there. Crossing through the courtyard of University of St. Thomas School of Law we found ourselves just down the street from the Dancing Geneesha, and our hostess was outside taking a smoke break with a friend. "Rachel," I said, "Do you want to give our hostess from the restaurant a bracelet?" She did, but I had to help her. "Hi again!" I said, "Rachel here would like to give you something."  "Aww..." was the response. That's the great thing about kids. I don't get "Aww" when I try to give people something. We gave the hostess and her friend Bibles and asked them if we could pray for them. They said yes, so Renée and I prayed for each of them. I guess we could've tried to talk further with them, but, well, we're still kinda new at this and I suppose we made our get-away while we were still in good standing. "That was easy!" Rachel said as we got back to the car. We were hot and sticky, somewhat deflated, trying to teach the kids that evangelism was a lifestyle, not just a one-time event.

Back to the Alliance Church for a 45 debrief. We filled out Encounter Cards (they do a really good job of making sure there is follow-up with people who were engaged with the Gospel) and people told stories. 4 people saved! A lady came up and introduced herself to me. She thanked me for leading worship on Nicolett and said it was really anointed. As we were singing a little boy on a scooter had rode right through our midst. His mother had walked around us. This lady talking to me had stopped the mother and engaged her in conversation. By the time those few songs were over she'd gone from not having anything to do with that 'Jesus stuff' to saying, 'This is for real!', surrendering her life to him and being filled with His Spirit! Whoa! The lady who led her to the Lord insisted we record it on our Encounter Card and not hers because she felt strongly that it was the worship that opened her heart to Jesus.

Notice the little guy on the scooter on the left whose mother gave her life to Jesus.  

So, that was our day. Then we had to run down to Savage to the chiropractor. Got home exhausted. Spent a couple hours on the mower to deflate and went to bed.

Thoughts on the day:

We have great kids. They can put up with a lot. And other people don't mind hanging out with them. They are "outreach worthy".

We're thankful the Great Commission is not, "Go and make converts, " but, "Go and make disciples," because Renée is finding herself loving to disciple while evangelism is not her strength. I don't mind talking to strangers, but I've never actually led someone to accept Jesus.

God uses us when we don't even know it. When we're faithful to what He calls us, moment by moment, He will use our lives to move people closer to Jesus.  THAT is what we've seen Him do over and over, and THAT is why we are at YWAM Minneapolis, because THAT is what we want most in life: That through our lives the kingdom of the Jesus we love will flourish.  Amen?

June Newsletter

   Renée’s pre-school “apprehension” about this role reversal was not unfounded, on many levels.  But within the first week of school she was coming home with Divine and life-changing revelations, and I was gaining a deep, experiential respect for all that she does as a homemaker!

What the SOMD has done for Renée is to make ample space for God to speak truth into the areas in which she’s believed lies for many years. Often this process is very painful.  It has not been a pleasant time emotionally for us.  But the fruit is worth it, in being better prepared for future ministry. In the last few weeks I’ve seen Renée step out with boldness, speaking the word of God into other’s lives. I’ve seen her catch a vision for what her ministry could look like overseas. I’ve seen her heal emotionally. And although I’m not good at letting my face show it, I’ve been repeatedly astonished at the work of the Holy Spirit in her life. 

In one way we are moving forward as a family is by looking back.  Who has God shaped us to be?  What has God planted in us that we can cultivate?  Renée has, through the years of dealing with disease and diet restriction in our children, developed a passion for healthy living (she hosted a seminar on that topic last Thursday!) By September Renée will begin pursuing a 4-year degree in naturopathic medicine by correspondence through Trinity School of Natural Health. 

For myself, years of interest in missiology, music, recording and a passion for calling out creative worship in others is leading me to the field of ethnodoxology (the theological and anthropological study, and practical application, of how every cultural group might use its unique and diverse artistic expressions appropriately to worship the God of the Bible.)  In November I’ll fly to western India for a 20-day Cross-Cultural Worship Ministry Seminar for credit with YWAM’s University of the Nations. 

We see these passions, naturopathic medicine and ethnodoxology, as a way for us to be serving among the unreached within 5-10 years.   Thank-you for your friendship along this journey!

Upcoming Dates:

June 25: SOMD Graduation

July 9-18: Joel leads a Mission Adventures trip to Pine Ridge,  SD

Sept-Nov: Joel leads Worship Focus in the Fall DTS.

Sept 8: Renée begins course work at TSNH.

Nov 2-20: CCWMS in India

Jan-Mar ‘16: Renée & Joel teach ECCO Bible Class

Finances:

Renée: 1^st year tuition & books, Certified Health Specialist:    $893.39

Joel: CCWMS fees and flights: ≈$1500

We will need your help with these expenses as we are about 10% or $300/month short of being fully supported.  Thank-you!

of Echoes Past

Love and Death.

What time the mighty moon was gathering light

Love paced the thymy plots of Paradise,

And all about him roll'd his lustrous eyes;

When, turning round a cassia, full in view,

Death, walking all alone beneath a yew,

And talking to himself, first met his sight:

"You must begone," said Death, "these walks are mine."

Love wept and spread his sheeny vans for flight;

Yet ere he parted said, "This hour is thine:

Thou art the shadow of life, and as the tree

Stands in the sun and shadows all beneath,

So in the light of great eternity

Life eminent creates the shade of death;

The shadow passeth when the tree shall fall,

But I shall reign for ever over all."

~Alfred Lord Tennyson

My daughter's birthday is a mixture of joy and sadness, gratefulness and longing, life and death. And though the above poem may not be completely theologically correct, it puts it in such a beautiful light. Though Emily passed through the shadow of death, Death will not reign eternal. Though she fought for life and we fought with her and for her, Death still won. But his win is totally temporary. In view of eternity, life wins out. Love champions. Emily's death is but a shadow, a blink of an eye, a breath. As is my life here on earth- a mist, and then I too will be gone. And then, together with Christ, Emily and I will dance in the light, where there is no more shadow.

14th May 2015

Dearest sweetest Emily,

     Your birthday is coming up. You will be seven years old. Seven! You are growing up so fast. I wonder what you look like now. What color is your hair? Are your eyes hazel like your siblings? What do you like to do in heaven? Are you an artist or an engineer? Do you enjoy music, do you sing to Jesus with your sweet voice? I'm sure you have a lovely voice. 

    Or maybe time is different in heaven. Maybe you are still an infant, a mere nine days old, and you are waiting for Joel and I so we can be with you as you grow up. 

    We all miss you Emily. We wish we could all be together as a family. Even now, at supper time, I think "someone is missing, there should be one more plate." And your siblings save a space for you in the van. In the back, in the middle. 

    That's where you would be. With us. Together. 

    We love you so much Emily Grace, full of light and hope fulfilled. Save a space for us in heaven, we'll be there when our Lord calls us home.

Love, your mommy