tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88006257426870729282024-02-07T00:46:22.174-08:00Miracles On The Mission FieldInteresting stories about experiencing God on the mission front.John Waltershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07863307378885677106noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8800625742687072928.post-78070741750259042772012-01-25T17:33:00.001-08:002012-01-26T09:26:06.191-08:00Triumph From Tragedy<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqKawTOHJNsiPHblbtytQBHEMtIVslzKvDtNQOvzZLpFtHBXsxO4Fek9c1Xjtxc8jcUWrnyRBVFy4rad1Qkack8Y6C8vOWhuG-x7DnvprTlU7B5eF_j4CpKeU_cYGSnNE8BRCc5KXsQs4/s1600/up+from+ashes+pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="115" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqKawTOHJNsiPHblbtytQBHEMtIVslzKvDtNQOvzZLpFtHBXsxO4Fek9c1Xjtxc8jcUWrnyRBVFy4rad1Qkack8Y6C8vOWhuG-x7DnvprTlU7B5eF_j4CpKeU_cYGSnNE8BRCc5KXsQs4/s200/up+from+ashes+pic.jpg" width="200" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;">As I sat and looked into the puzzled eyes of Brandon, a college age young man, I had to keep the smile on my face from turning into a full fledged chuckle. God's timing and how He takes the most awful circumstances and turns them into a blessing to use for His glory and to bless others can be beyond miraculous. </span><br />
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Brandon lived through an incredibly horrible event which he had just shared with me, one that was right out of the scariest horror flicks. He was just a teenager when his father, estranged from his mother, in a drunken stupor, walked into his house in the wee hours of the morning and stabbed to death Brandon's mother and little brother while they slept. His father proceeded to set their house on fire and in the process set himself on fire, severely burning himself. He was later arrested in the hospital and eventually found guilty of killing his wife and son, Brandon's mother and brother.</div>
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Brandon happened to be living with his father in a separate apartment at the time so he slept through the tragic death of his mother and brother. </div>
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There was one other person at the house that night, Brandon's young 12 year old cousin, Joey who happened to be spending the night in the house with Brandon's younger brother. Joey escaped being a victim, as Joey explained to his mother, "I used my basketball moves to get away." He had awakened to see Brandon's father stabbing his cousin in the bed next to him and when he ran from the bed, was chased around the house by the man with a bloody knife. He ran from the house to a neighbor's where he summoned the police and his parents. </div>
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Brandon was sleeping soundly when he was awakened early in the morning by the police, along with Joey's father, Brandon's uncle Neal. Can you imagine being awakened to the news that your father was in the hospital with third degree burns and your mother and brother are both dead, killed by your father! </div>
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Fast forward four years, to our meeting. I had been told there was a young man named Brandon who wanted to spend some time on the mission field in South Africa. I was to interview him and get an impression whether he was mature enough and capable to spend the summer with Pastor Willie Dingler in Johannesburg. So I had called and set up a meeting at a coffee shop in San Antonio. When I told my wife about the meeting and the name of the young man, she quickly remembered the name and the story. You see, Neal, Joey's father, is Barbara's step brother, and we were well aware of the tragedy. We had attended the funeral of his mother and brother. Neal and Patty had taken Brandon in and raised him through his high school years. They were a strong Christian family and along with their two teenage sons and daughters, provided a safe and encouraging place for Brandon to heal from the awful tragedy. </div>
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As I sat with Brandon in the coffee shop, he shared his story about his dad killing his mom and brother and burning down the house. When he got to the part where he said he was awakened by the police, he hesitated just long enough for me to break in with, "and your uncle Neal?". He couldn't figure out how in the world I could have known that detail. This is where I had a good laugh and explained that I was related to him in a round about way and that I knew the story. </div>
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After we talked some about his adopted family, he went on to describe how God had healed him and then shared how he was in the process of trying to forgive his father.</div>
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I gave the thumbs up for him to go to South Africa and he spent the time there ministering to all types of people. Especially powerful were the many times he shared his story in the prisons of Johannesburg. Pastor Dingler told me he had never seen one person have such an impact on people, especially the prisoners. Many would be weeping as they listened to the unbelievable tragedy that Brandon experienced and the healing, restoration and forgiveness which God had provided. </div>
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God's story is still being written about Brandon as he prepares for married life. He's engaged to be married this summer. And God's working not only in his life but also in the family of Neal and Patty as they and their children, including Joey, serve God in ministry in unique and incredible ways. I seldom doubt that God can turn tragedy into blessings but I'm often surprised and amused with how He does it!</div>
<span style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; color: black; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We know that in <b>all</b> <b>things</b> God works for <b>good</b> with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28</span></span></span>John Waltershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07863307378885677106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8800625742687072928.post-51192372454660079532011-10-31T08:29:00.000-07:002011-10-31T08:29:17.268-07:00God's miraculous directing hand in a South African Prison<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjepILUFi2aIw7HtQBPt-oUnmREe-h13u68XjPbrMGtqK01HyZ0ZRLAZNUCQ_0tDEhegxc7JhNVxUDaBAsy8vy6Z4OOVInIa9An6d77Qkd2LqMU5le6cvWAdR4tBeUZxDdcyggapoAVsxw/s1600/SA+prison.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjepILUFi2aIw7HtQBPt-oUnmREe-h13u68XjPbrMGtqK01HyZ0ZRLAZNUCQ_0tDEhegxc7JhNVxUDaBAsy8vy6Z4OOVInIa9An6d77Qkd2LqMU5le6cvWAdR4tBeUZxDdcyggapoAVsxw/s200/SA+prison.jpg" width="200" /></a>God answers prayers in many ways but one powerful means is the way
God directs us to the people who need Him the most. I had the fortune to
see how God provided miraculous direction through an answered
prayer during a mission to a South African prison during a mission trip to Johannesburg.
<br />
Our mission team had just held a worship service in the
recreational yard of a prison in Johannesburg. There were around 200
inmates who gathered to participate and over half of them responded to
the invitation to accept Christ. It was an awesome time, especially
afterward when we broke up in groups and encouraged the men in their
walk with Jesus. As we closed and gathered to leave the prison, one
young inmate approached me. He had a pained look on his face and
introduced himself as Viano. He explained that he had recently been
transferred from the juvinile prison and his parents lived in another
country in Africa and didn't even know he was in prison. Viano asked me
to help him. I didn't exactly know what to do. I only and a minute or
so to talk to him as our team was leaving. I asked Viano if he had
made a decision to follow Christ. He said that he had. I pointed out
the many inmates who were Christians and told Viano that he needed to
find a friend or two that he could trust from his fellow believers.
With them, I explained, would he find strength, safety and
encouragement. I prayed with him and then looked for my team who was
heading out.
<br />
As I made my way to catch up to my team, another inmate jumped
down from a platform in front of me and said he wanted to share very
quickly about his time in the prison. I told him, "please hurry, my
team is leaving and I don't want to be left behind in this prison!" He
told me his name was Collin and his countenance was just the opposite of
Viano's. He had a smile from ear to ear and he quickly explained that
he had been in this prison for five years but had become a Christian
during his time in captivity. He was dicipled and now is discipling
several other inmates himself. He believed he was exactly where God
wanted him to be. What a contrast between prisoners, Collin and Viano.
<br />
Suddenly it hit me that Collin was just who Viano needed. I
turned around to find Viano to introduce him to Collin but he had left
the area. I explained to Collin about Viano and asked him if he would
find him and disciple him. Viano's reply shocked me. His smile
evaperated and with a serious face he proclaimed, "I do not hear you
speak." He paused and I wondered what in the world he meant. Then he
added, "I hear God speaking and I must do this". Praise
God! I said thank you, <wbr></wbr>prayed a quick prayer and ran <wbr></wbr>to my team wondering how all this would turn out but not expecting to ever know the answer.
<br />
The following day our team returned to the prison to minister to a
select group of inmates who had signed up for a Master Life
discipleship study. I did not know that we were going to return to the
same prison and hadn't considered that I would see Collin again. We
walked into the prison, down a long hallway and then were directed to a
room that was packed with about 40 inmates, shoulder to shoulder. They
were standing and singing, How Great Thou Art as we walked in. There on
the front row was Collin. As he sang, he noticed me, smiled and
pointed down the row. Three men over was Viano!
<br />
It wasn't until we had a break that I had a chance to talk to
Collin. He rushed up to me and excitedly said, "pastor, I must tell you
what happened. When you told me that I must find this man and disciple
him, I thought that this was not possible. There are 5,000 inmates in
this prison and I don't even know if he is in my section. But I prayed
that God would direct me to him. This morning when I went to eat
breakfast, I noticed a man sitting up against the wall, his head down.
He was very disturbed and I walked up to him and introduced myself and
asked if I could help him. He said his name was Viano. Viano? I
asked, did you attend the service yesterday in the rec yard?"
<br />
"Yes", he answered.
<br />
"Did you talk to the pastor and are you the one who needs help?"
<br />
"Yes, I believe so," he said.
<br />
"I couldn't believe God had <wbr></wbr>answered my prayer and so quickly", Collin explained, "<wbr></wbr>but he is a big God and I now <wbr></wbr>I realize he can do anything."
<br />
Out of the thousands, God <wbr></wbr>directed Collin to exactly <wbr></wbr>the one who could help him. What a miracle.
<br />
God does anwer prayers and I would think that He loves to bring
us together with those who need Him the most. As I recall God's miracle
in a South African prison, I am reminded that I should ask God every
day to direct me to the ones who are searching for Him, to those to
whom I can help bring closer <wbr></wbr>to God. And, as Collin, I <wbr></wbr>should be looking for those <wbr></wbr>who need Jesus and be prepared when I <wbr></wbr>meet that someone to do whatever possible to help them to know Jesus. John Waltershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07863307378885677106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8800625742687072928.post-49641561223537113232011-09-21T16:44:00.000-07:002011-09-21T16:52:19.532-07:00God's Miraculous provision in HondurasThis story is still being written and we have yet to see God's fruition
but as you read I hope you'll see God's love for children and his desire
for us to take care of those precious little ones.<br />
<div>
It started
on our first mission trip to Honduras in 2002 to support our missionary
Teresa Devlin. During that trip, a young girl, no older than 6 wandered
into our camp with two little brothers that had been abandoned by her
parents. It was hard for me to imagine a six year old taking care of
two younger brothers. Teresa confirmed that there were many homeless
children in Honduras.</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div>
This
experience inspired a dream to establish an orphanage for children like
this. But I must admit my motives were not just to provide for orphans
but also provide a ministry opportunity for mission teams coming from the
United States. The travel to Honduras was easy and the cost was
reasonable.</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUp9kWe8fUjpvPVnayCUuvr_vhmROPaqsNWzjE-OQhoJDZll_oVkgXGHZLgTK0YzpXKrDYRR45WeXV9wEAhoPQf0qTQyowKpAxSsm0-YVqZPHQbOm0cqcm4oVN84pTzgiEpIbMB9a43is/s1600/IMAGE_1000000007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUp9kWe8fUjpvPVnayCUuvr_vhmROPaqsNWzjE-OQhoJDZll_oVkgXGHZLgTK0YzpXKrDYRR45WeXV9wEAhoPQf0qTQyowKpAxSsm0-YVqZPHQbOm0cqcm4oVN84pTzgiEpIbMB9a43is/s320/IMAGE_1000000007.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beautiful property for the orphanage</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
As I suggested the idea to our missionary there,
Teresa seemed to act as if it were a plan straight from heaven. She
began to look for property where we could have an orphanage. Two years after we began to talk about the orphanage Teresa found a piece of
property about 10 miles outside of the city of La Ceiba where she had
her music conservatory and about a mile off the main highway. This
beautiful piece of property, about 50 acres, butted up against the Pico
Bonito National Park. It had water and access to electricity. There
were few trees and seemed like a perfect place for an orphanage. And
the price was right, just $16,000 which we had raised. Not bad for 50
acres. </div>
<div>
When we went to make an offer, suddenly the price
went up to $26,000. This was out of our budget and right after Teresa
informed me of the price increase, I wrote in my journal that I guess
God didn't have plans for that orphanage after all. Two days after I
wrote those words, Teresa called and said she had met an American
businessman, Charles Button who was interested in helping us. She had
taken him to the property and he loved the idea of an orphanage and the
land and offered to pay the balance. I was a bit skeptical because she
sometimes hears what she wants to hear, so I asked if I could talk to
this Mr. Button. She said sure, his office is across the street from my
house and in a few minutes Mr. Button confirmed that he was
serious. We now had our land. God apparently did want this orphanage
built after all!</div>
<div>
Over the next few years we have raised money
for buildings and the process of completing the Living Water Children's
home has been slow and steady. We are close to completing the last
building before the children arrive. God has seemed to step in every
time we began to get discouraged and brought just the right people or
resources to help us along the way. </div>
<div>
One such occurrence was
just as we were about to begin the construction of our first cottage. I
was preparing our Grace Point spring mission trip to Honduras and
recruiting our team members. I had asked one of our members, Michelle
Brand if she would consider going. She told me she would pray about
it. A couple of months later she confessed that she had other ideas for
spring break and asked her middle sister if they could do something
together, go to the beach or other vacation spot. Her sister replied,
"doesn't your church do a spring mission trip? That would be fun to do
together." Soon they had recruited their father, Othal Brand,
Michelle's Aunt, her younger sister and one brother to go. Her youngest
sister was in high school and her brother had just returned from Iraq.
Othal, a businessman from McAllen recruited two of his employees to come
along.</div>
<div>
I did not know any of her family members but we needed
them to fill out our team. And I was soon to learn that this family
was not just your ordinary group, God had prepared ahead for them to be
there.</div>
<div>
Othal, I learned on the way to Honduras, actually lived
in Honduras and had a fruit and vegetable business, exporting to the
U.S. When I told him that he needed to meet the Living Water Children's
Home board president, Rene Lafitte, he smiled and said, "I know
Rene. I think he purchased some of my land when I moved back to the
states!" My jaw dropped. What are the chances that this could
happen? What was God up to?</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixx7LR021qwN_UwYTD2m1HwWN7khwF5EOXCYKckOZBWy5pcRCICRWpSNEFFKG_xD2-RRZUqdePxO7RdrVud6zoms5N1V_1i0-zmX6vj7P8Va1tU1h6R7RUFEcfUxdiLSI-IbC_0cbzghc/s1600/IMAGE_1000000025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixx7LR021qwN_UwYTD2m1HwWN7khwF5EOXCYKckOZBWy5pcRCICRWpSNEFFKG_xD2-RRZUqdePxO7RdrVud6zoms5N1V_1i0-zmX6vj7P8Va1tU1h6R7RUFEcfUxdiLSI-IbC_0cbzghc/s320/IMAGE_1000000025.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Living Water Children's Ranch </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
Our biggest dilemma at this time
was a serious erosion problem with the orphanage land. A river that
bordered the north part of our land was quickly eroding the land and we
needed to find a solution quickly. Othal was working on this project
for us but he realized the scope of the problem was bigger than we could
handle and we needed some heavy equipment to solve it. Othal's sister
was wondering what her purpose was to be on the trip and so decided she
would do her part by writing Standard Fruit Company a letter requesting
their help. She said they had worked with Standard when they had their
business in Honduras and perhaps they would help us. I thought it was a
very long shot but it didn't hurt to ask. </div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div>
Much to my
surprise we received an answer in two days. "Come on out to the plant
and we will see what we can do". So three of us went to the plant where
we were met by a manager of Standard, Jorge Williams. He said, "jump
in my truck and let's go see the land." It was only a few miles away
but on the way to the land, Mr. Williams shared his story with us. He
said he had discovered several years ago that he was HIV positive. Not
long after that he gave his life to Christ, became a pastor and started a
church under a tree. Along the way God cured him of the disease and
now his church was thriving. It was an amazing story and an even more
amazing turn of events. </div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbmiBU8JeQ1wGZaybnCSSqtt9TEzMgEUOYEiOFiEhi_k5Dm1ux5BQlkwPh7zW7IKFI_X7VRFa5h_xzLuYHnNWELaQ0iSHqCXBDSpZDYBAkdpnaqFwFTTMrZk5_hZXMCjepFEMZPzOKSpM/s1600/waterfall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbmiBU8JeQ1wGZaybnCSSqtt9TEzMgEUOYEiOFiEhi_k5Dm1ux5BQlkwPh7zW7IKFI_X7VRFa5h_xzLuYHnNWELaQ0iSHqCXBDSpZDYBAkdpnaqFwFTTMrZk5_hZXMCjepFEMZPzOKSpM/s200/waterfall.jpg" width="149" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">baptized in this waterfall</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
When we got to the property, Jorge
was moved by the vision of an orphanage and told us he wanted to help us
and could even envision preaching some day at the orphanage. He
gathered us together and prayed for the land and the problem and the
eventual children that would grow up there. Wow! Tears were flowing
down my cheek as he prayed. Never could I imagine that God would take
such care of the details to work to bring us this man. </div>
<div>
When
we arrived back at our camp, everyone was asking, "how did it go?" All I
could think of was Ephesians 3:20, that "God will do exceedingly more
than we can ask for or even imagine."</div>
<div>
Standard Fruit helped stop the erosion and Jorge has become a ministry friend and partner. And</div>
<div>
one
of the workers that Othal brought along accepted Christ and I had the
opportunity to baptize him in a waterfall not far from the orphanage!</div>
<br />
<div>
During
this process God continues to do exceedingly more that we could imagine
and in the most incredible, unpredictable, miraculous ways. It really
confirms that He wants this orphanage and his heart is for the
children!</div>
John Waltershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07863307378885677106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8800625742687072928.post-12628738446583966152011-09-10T10:43:00.001-07:002011-09-10T11:07:56.472-07:00In The Crossfire in Rio<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQV-jXlcp73IjSZA_OgKboHjOzPvK6Ud0Z9wCVhcr3hXEQOmtG2f0byD6WT-rb6soU-QESjWqwx_w_SSqxcoMVq8PXoOon4bRFTETdc64gB8INOvYGsTHQUUQp25ycF4ZqYUP-ouXzYiM/s1600/Rio+favela.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="61" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQV-jXlcp73IjSZA_OgKboHjOzPvK6Ud0Z9wCVhcr3hXEQOmtG2f0byD6WT-rb6soU-QESjWqwx_w_SSqxcoMVq8PXoOon4bRFTETdc64gB8INOvYGsTHQUUQp25ycF4ZqYUP-ouXzYiM/s320/Rio+favela.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
"We are not in Texas anymore!", I recalled one of our team members
remarking as our mission team sat in a church in the heart of Rio de
Janiero, Brazil trying to make sense of the crazy events of the past
three days. We were getting some counsel from two different Brazilian
pastors concerning two hair-raising experiences since we had arrived in
Rio four days earlier. The first occurred following a Sunday night
worship service in the small Juaniza favela (Brazilian slum).</div>
<div>
We
had divided our mission team into two groups for worship at two
different churches. The larger group went with pastor Daniel Camaforte
to his church in the favela. We were doing most of our work with his
church. I kept a smaller group with me as I was preaching in the church
which was our lodging for the week, located closer to the downtown
area.</div>
<div>
The team at Pastor Daniel's church had a great worship
service and were fellowshipping with the members of the church outside
in the courtyard beside the main road of the favela when the Rio police
drove into the favela. All of a sudden, shots began to ring out coming
from the drug gang in the favela directed at the police. The church
members were suddenly in the crossfire of a shootout between police and
the drug gang. </div>
<div>
Pastor Daniel quickly and calmly urged
everyone back into the church. He directed all of our team into a back
room to avoid being hit by stray bullets and waited for the shooting to
die down. During a lull he tried to get our team to leave but the
shooting started once again, and so the team returned to the
room. Finally the shooting stopped and Pastor Daniel got our team back
on the bus and walked down a couple of blocks beside the bus to the exit
of the favela to make sure we were safe.</div>
<div>
You can imagine how
disturbed and worked up everyone was when they returned to the church
where we were staying. Two of the young ladies explained that they had
just returned from the small store a couple of blocks from the church
before the shooting occurred. If the police had come in a minute or too
sooner, they would have been right in the middle of the shootout. </div>
<div>
Needless
to say, our team spent a restless night but got back to work the next
day doing some construction on the church in the favela and ministering
to children. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grace Point mission team to Rio</td></tr>
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The following day,
Tuesday our team took the morning off to go to Copacabana beach. On the
way back to the bus, about 10 of the team were walking through a nice
neighborhood. Four of the team had stopped in a magazine stand to buy
some refreshments. I was about 20 feet back from the stand when I heard
a shot ring out. Now we were all very sensitive to the sound of
gunfire, and so my first reaction was someone was shooting at us, the
Americans. I heard someone yell get down, and I fell face first beside a
tree. I looked up and saw a Brazilian man staggering from the magazine
stand muttering something in Portuguese. The front of his chest was
covered in blood. Obviously he was the one who had been shot. Todd
Riddle, our Singles minister hollered "let's get out of here. Run!" I
wanted to help the man but I couldn't understand just what was
happening. I'm sorry to say, my fear took precedent over the care of
the man and I along with the others took off toward the bus. As I began
to run I saw some police on the far corner of the street and hollered
for everyone to walk fast. I didn't want the police to think we had
committed the shooting.</div>
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We made it
back to the bus where we met the rest of the team. There I found out
what had happened. Those that were in the magazine stand said a young
Brazilian man was in the stand with them. He pulled out a gun and shot
the manager in the chest and took off running. They didn't know exactly
why he had shot the manager, perhaps he had been caught stealing
something. But you can imagine how distraught they were. One of the
ladies on the team who was in the magazine stand just wanted to go
home. She had been involved in two shootings within days of the mission
trip. </div>
<div>
We had planned to go to
another favela to do a sports camp with kids that afternoon. But the
shootings had unnerved the team to the extent I thought it best to take
the afternoon off and allow the team to process what had happened and
pray. I asked both the pastors, the pastor of the church in which we
were staying and Pastor Daniel from the favela to talk to the team to
help us understand what had happened. It was interesting the different
perspectives from the pastors. The pastor of the church where we were
staying, which was in an upper income area of Rio, was very surprised at
what had happened. He said he had lived in Rio a long time and never
had witnessed anything like this. Pastor Daniel, on the other hand,
said it occurred all the time in the favela and it was something that
those who lived in the favela dealt with on a regular basis. He assured
us that God was in control but that we should realize that we were in a
dangerous place.</div>
<div>
We prayed a long time and then talked about
how none of us had been injured, that God had protected us. We prayed
for the man that had been shot and later heard that he was in critical
but stable condition. We prayed for the people in the favela, for
Daniel's church members who lived in the danger zone. We prayed that
our mission would not be deterred, that fear would not cause us to
divert what we were called to do in Rio. </div>
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That night our plan
was to go to the Favela in which we were to work in that afternoon,
where I was to preach. I told the team that I was going to go and
anyone that wanted could go with me but if there were any that felt
uncomfortable, they could stay behind. Everyone would understand. All
but a couple of the team went with me. We had a tremendous service
where I challenged the men to step out and lead their families and the
church. Afterward the pastor of the church took us to a house which had
an open porch that overlooked the city of Rio. A lot of the favelas as
this one are built on the side of the mountain. The view was
unbelievable. The pastor introduced us to a man who had once been a
drug lord and sold drugs from this very spot. The former drug dealer
explained that had given his life to Jesus Christ and walked away from
his old lifestyle and now led a Bible study on this porch where he once
sold drugs.</div>
<div>
The pastor then asked me, "Pastor John, would you
like to meet the Drug Lord of this favela?" The question caught me
somewhat by surprise. My wife, Barbara was with me and I glanced over
at her to get an idea of what she thought about this. I could tell she
was very concerned but she gave the approval, saying "I understand, it
is up to."</div>
<div>
I looked over the team and asked Nick, one of our
young guys if he wanted to go. He agreed and we took off along with the
pastor, our Brazilian guide,Cesar and a female translator. There are
no roads in the favela, just a small path up through the
neighborhood. It was dark and very creepy, the only light coming from
inside the houses. We would stop from time to time to visit with the
neighbors as we made our way up the mountain. </div>
<div>
After some
time we stopped to talk to some men that were sitting on a porch
alongside the pathway. They were dressed in army camouflage, three on
the porch with several others hanging out behind them. I leaned over
and asked our translator if this was the man. She said yes, he is the
Drug Lord. I still remember his name, Carlos Gabriella, and he was much
younger than I anticipated, in his mid twenties. </div>
<div>
I was
introduced to him and I began to tell him about our interesting
adventures with bullets and shootings. As I told about the shooting of
the magazine stand manager, he looked very agitated and indicated he
would like to find the man who did the shooting and deliver the
punishment. I was to learn that the drug gangs acted as the police of
most of the favelas. They keep order and control over their
neighborhoods. </div>
<div>
I remember talking to him about King David of
the Bible and how David was a leader but was not a perfect man. In
spite of his sin and shortcomings as King, the bible said he was a man
after God's own heart. I told him that I realized he was the leader of
this favela and I urged him to be a leader like David. I encouraged him
to be a man after God's own heart, that God would forgive him of his
sins if he just asked. I asked if I could pray for him and he said
yes. I put my hand on his shoulder and prayed for him. I was told he
had just become a new father and so I prayed for his new baby boy. A
funny thing was that the translator told me that Carlos' baby was a
girl, not a boy, but she had translated girl for me! Whew. Thanks for
catching my mistake!</div>
<div>
As I think back, this was an incredible
opportunity to speak not only to Carlos but to all those who were around
listening in. This would have been lost if we had decided not to go
back into the favela because of the shooting. And the shootings
actually gave me a story to sort of break the ice with the Drug Lord. </div>
<div>
I
recalled the words I spoke in a sermon recently which so applied to
this mission. "God has prepared you for something great and He wants to
be your guide. And If you are not pursuing a dangerous quest with your
life, well, then you don’t need a guide. If you’ve settle in your mind
to live as though this is a fairly neutral world and you are simply
trying to live your life as best you can, then you can probably get by
with the Christianity of tips and techniques. But if you intend to live
in the Story that God is telling, and if you want the life he offers,
then you are going to need more than a handful of principles. You are
going to need a guide. There are too many twists and turns in the road
ahead, too many ambushes waiting only God knows where, there is just too
much at stake for the enemy. 'Narrow is the way', said Jesus. How shall
we be sure to find it? We need God intimately, and we need him
desperately." We certainly needed to to rely upon Him totally this week
in Rio!</div>
John Waltershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07863307378885677106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8800625742687072928.post-16464033876859029432011-09-10T10:12:00.001-07:002011-09-10T10:46:36.440-07:00Miracle On An African Safari<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0_q5GIwWVue4WphGl55xJhvfh6kXv2YWzXoh0YPkEAe854rLYl-iJep01g-_LqIvNHZlFR21N8vBgGcob9vKeVuPNZNJtvMGXTo2voX0msJccBKpn84KtAhrVmt_alvKgvVQc7mhtK4s/s1600/Africa+view.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0_q5GIwWVue4WphGl55xJhvfh6kXv2YWzXoh0YPkEAe854rLYl-iJep01g-_LqIvNHZlFR21N8vBgGcob9vKeVuPNZNJtvMGXTo2voX0msJccBKpn84KtAhrVmt_alvKgvVQc7mhtK4s/s320/Africa+view.jpg" width="320" /></a> For many people, one of their life long dreams is to take a safari in Africa. On my first mission trip to Africa, I was fortunate enough to get to experience a safari, something I did not expect, just a really nice bonus, icing on the cake. What was even more of a surprise than the safari itself, was the miracle God did on the safari.<br />
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I must admit that I didn't rough it much on my first trip to Africa. Actually it was a planning trip for my first mission to Kenya, leading a group from Grace Point along with a team from Houston Northwest Baptist. But God taught me an amazing lesson on the trip, experiencing what I consider a miracle and encouraged me that I was on the right course and in his will. </div>
<div>
I had recently taken the missions pastor position at Grace Point in San Antonio, moving from Hyde Park in Austin where I'd spent 20 years on staff. I had to fill some high expectations as it was Grace Point's vision that everyone in the church go global at least once in five years. So our first trip to Africa needed to be a success to give us some momentum.</div>
<div>
I traveled to Africa with Pastor Dwight Davis from Houston Northwest Baptist. We stayed in a 3 bedroom lodge at a large national park in South Africa north of Johannesburg. We were joined by two other pastors from Africa, one from Kenya and the other from South Africa and we spent three days planning our mission trip and how we were to help an orphanage in Kenya. </div>
<div>
On the second day we got to experience a picture safari, no guns on this trip. So we loaded up in a Range Rover which had three bench seats, open air for great viewing of the amazing creatures.</div>
<div>
The three other pastors jumped in the top row, which left me to sit on the second row with a couple I didn't know, a mother and son from Scotland. The son was about 30 years of age and this was their dream vacation that they had been planning for years. And the safari was the highlight of this trip of a lifetime.</div>
<div>
We took off and made our way through the park stopping to see zebras, giraffe, rhinos and all sorts of animals and birds. Near the end of the trip we pulled up along side of a mother lion and her cubs, which were just off the road about 15 yards away. We were instructed to stay in the vehicle and not to make any sudden moves. We were very exposed, with no top to the Range Rover, so it was an exhilarating, yet unnerving experience. </div>
<div>
During the safari which was about two hours long, I got to know the couple beside me. I talked mostly with the son and soon found out that he had become a Mormon about two years earlier. I asked him questions about his faith and then shared what some of the differences were between my Christian faith and Mormonism. I told him the biggest difference was that Mormon's believed you had to earn your way to heaven. Their faith was like most all religions in that it was based on works. Where the true Christian faith is based not on works but on God's grace as I shared from Ephesians 2:8-9. </div>
<div>
He readily agreed with my assessment of the Mormon faith, saying he could see that they were very strict about following rules that would lead you to salvation which was what he didn't like about the religion. </div>
<div>
I'm not sure how it happened, but by the end of the safari this Scottish Mormon wanted to accept Jesus Christ and be freed from the rules and legalism he was experiencing. He prayed to receive Christ and agreed to meet with us again the next day. </div>
<div>
I just couldn't believe what had happened. Here we were experiencing a trip of a life time and this young man was receiving a gift of eternity! Even on a trip when all of your attention should have been on these incredible animals, I was far more interested in sharing the living water with this man and what was more incredible was that he was not distracted by the beautiful scenery or the amazing animals. </div>
<div>
But God was about to do more. This new believer came to our lodge the following day and we talked some more about his new faith and encouraged him. The lodge had a small swimming pool on the porch. It was smaller than a lap pool and just a little larger than a whirl pool sauna. Almost like a large baptismal, provided just for occasions like this. I baptized him in the pool and we prayed with him and his new life in Christ. What was also amazing was that Dwight Davis had brought one book to read on the trip, thrown into his suitcase as an after thought. It was The God Makers, a book about the Mormon church and what they really believe. Dwight said he didn't know at the time why he brought the book along, but does now. </div>
<div>
This experience really encouraged me as I could see God's hand directing me to follow Him. It was an affirmation that I was in the right place and God would provide me many more opportunities, adventures and miracles along the way. For the former Mormon, he and his mother came to South Africa to experience God's wonderful creation and in addition got to experience God for eternity!</div>
John Waltershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07863307378885677106noreply@blogger.com0