Why write about Early Christians?

Why write about Early Christians?”

Every Bible teacher writes about early Christians! Just open the New Testament, and you’ll find scores, perhaps hundreds of individuals. Their personalities come alive, and preachers inspire a congregation to follow the example of people who followed Jesus. Mostly, though, we concentrate on about a dozen people: Jesus, Paul, Peter, John, James, Mary, Mary Magdalene, Barnabas, and a few more.

But moving past the New Testament pages, what image do you have of the people who carried the faith into the Second Century? It’s difficult to enter into the lives of ordinary believers. For most people, history fades into a fog, without a name, a personality, or a conflict to illustrate how the faith spread across the Roman Empire.  

How blessed my wife and I were to live in Turkey for a decade! Turkey is full of history, and I explored many ancient sites. Out of eleven years of service came ministry for many people who are now our friends, but I also took time to explore ancient cities. Seven cities. In the Introduction to Revelation.

The seven novels called Heartbeats of Courage show the reader what the Revelation's seven cities were like. You walk down city streets, shop at a marketplace, witness a slave auction, and get invited to meals. You also experience increasing persecution. You meet many people: judges in courts, merchants in shops, teachers in schools, farmworkers, and apprentices in clothing factories. Men and women, boys and girls, slaves and slave owners, wealthy and poor: all take their place in my stories.

I write about early Christians because we know so much about the Greco-Roman age. We find in the experiences of early believers some great lessons. I hope these books will move you to think about how to better live as a Christian in our day and age.

I believe we can learn much from early. Christians. Politics divide us, but the love of Christ unites. We all want to “love God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind, and our neighbor as our self.” Remember the other “love”? “Love your enemy.” My novels take these four loves – for God, neighbor, enemy, and self – and create situations where believers sought economic justice, social equality, and educational opportunities. Come on! I hope to meet you inside the city of Pergamum!

Pray for Burma / Myanmar during this time of Crisis

The below news came from someone living in Yangon. 2 days ago the military released 25,000 prisoners from prisons in Yangon. These ARE NOT political prisoners, but true criminals. Please read below and pray as God leads.

Situation in Myanmar (Feb 13, 9:00pm)

Night are not safe anymore with serious violation of Basic Human Rights in Myanmar

The military just announced that they invoke article 419 to revoke article 5, 7, and 8 of the 2008 constitution (basic human rights protection of the people ). The effects are:

1) they can arrest without warrants;

2) they can search the houses without the presence of the ward administrative officer;

3) they can track people down;

4) they can seek information from the operators;

5) they can detain people for more than 24 hours.

According to those, they can go in and out of every house without any permission or warrant, and they can search everywhere and can arrest everyone.

The military released the prisoners yesterday.

The released prisoners tried to poison the apartment water tanks in several townships during night time.

Yesterday Night

Released prisoners throw "Fire Rings" and burning in most streets of Tharkayta, Yangon around 8:30PM.

Tonight the prisoners were putting poison in the drinking water pipes of apartments in NgaMoeYeik Township.

Myanmar people have to build barriers around the streets or wards to protest themselves from the criminals released from prisons by the military. Local people arrest them and ask the prisons about who orders them to do it.

Carla Nelson's Sensitivities to the pains of our world.

Town bombed by government aircraft in El Salvador  

Gracious God:

You have invited all who are weary to come to you, to lay before you our burdens, and to take on your yoke of rest. So, I come.

I come bringing before you my wrestling heart.

Forgive my self-pity over the inconvenience of being home-bound and mask-adorned while basking in the comfort, safety, and privilege of my circumstance.

Change my selfish heart to focus on those facing real hardship and devastation.

And widen my capacity to hold the bigger picture.

I come bringing before you those in our world who are the most vulnerable.

Hear their cries for peace and for security.

Heal all who are sick.

Deliver them from the anxiety of tomorrow.

Protect them from those who injure and kill.

Feed their children.

Make way for health through clean drinking water, medicines and vaccinations.

Prepare the land so that it may be able to produce food.

Comfort those who mourn.

And provide for them both through your miraculous ways and through us, your servants.

I come bringing before you our church partners in Africa – in South Sudan, in the DR Congo, in Kenya, and in Rwanda.

Receive their worship of you, O God, for they know from whom all blessings flow.

Grant them wisdom to navigate the challenges that are before them.

Support their ministry initiatives.

Look after their leaders.

Care for the widows, the widowers, and the orphans.

And protect their joy, optimism, and kind-heartedness.

I come bringing before you our Canadian Baptist Christian witness in Canada and around the world.

Bestow on us generosity of spirit.

Honour the efforts of service done in your name.

Impart to us your direction.

Supply to us your Spirit’s fruits and gifts.

And furnish us with your companionship.

And I come bringing my desire to be your person in this place and at this time.

May it be so.

Amen.

Carla Nelson

Pray for India. Difficult situations because of Covid.

 

Pray with Suraj Komaravalli for India.

Almighty and everlasting God, we praise and thank you for your grace that is always sufficient for us.

We pray for continuous wisdom, knowledge, and attention to hear your voice so that we would move and minister according to your leading.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created many difficult situations in India. We pray especially for those on the margins as they still struggle with debts, loss of jobs, loss of business, chaos, uncertainty, depression, and loneliness. Give us the strength, Oh Lord, that CBM, through the local churches, could continue to demonstrate the love of Jesus Christ and bring hope in their brokenness.

We thank you for faithful donors, prayer partners, and well-wishers, who have a special heart for the ministry in India. We pray that you would bless them and their families immensely.

We look to you to lead us well in partnership with the local Indian churches to empower and transform the lives of the poor widows and small children attending tutoring classes in the Soura community. We pray for community acceptance of the girls who were rescued from human trafficking in Kolkata. We seek your direction in the ministerial formation of young students as they train to be pastors and leaders in the Oriya, Soura, Naga, and Telugu Baptist churches. We also pray for the many unemployed missing and Ao Naga youth and women – that through the Faith + Work initiatives, they may see opportunities and success to sustain themselves.

We remember the leadership of our Indian partners and seek your blessings upon their ministerial plans and goals. We particularly pray for Oriya Baptists as they elect a new body of leaders.

We pray for an opportunity to be vaccinated and protected from COVID-19 to continue to minister with good health and a sound mind, especially during my travel to the field areas where local partners are located.

In the many fields where my CBM colleagues serve in different and difficult situations around the world, we ask for your continued blessing as we all work to bring shalom in the name of Jesus.

O Lord, we put forward our supplications at your feet and seek your mercy.  Be with us and help us.  In Christ’s name, we pray, amen.

A Prayer for Northern Thailand and Burma/Myanmar

A Prayer from Lilian Yang,

Dear God, we praise you for you are compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. Your light shines on the people in the darkness, you bring hope to those desperate.

God, I come to you with humility, praying for our mission partners who have been affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. I pray that your grace and mercy come upon Thailand Bethel Theological Institute. As the second wave of COVID-19 overcomes Thailand and Myanmar, people have to face more challenges than before. The Thai-Myanmar border remains closed. The students from Myanmar are still not able to get back to the campus. They are struggling with living there and learning online under various obstacles. I pray that you will grant every teacher and student of TBTI the strength to keep on and that they may experience your provision in this difficult time.

God, I would like to remember the Lahu mission project in Myanmar. We had to cancel our trip due to the pandemic, but through the sharing from the local pastors, the gospel continues to spread and many have come under your name. We praise you and pray that you will continue to do the wonderful work among the villages and let more villagers know your salvation and worship you as the only true God. God, we also pray for peace and unity over the political situation in Myanmar.

God, we pray for the local churches in the Golden Triangle Region. As they bear your witnesses to this wounded world, we pray that the Holy Spirit will lead your servants to bring the Good News of salvation and the blessings of healing to the community. God, even if our days are full of uncertainties, we still have hope in you. We pray that your healing will come upon the sick, your comfort comes upon the wounded people, your provision will be with those who are in need.

God, we give thanks to you, for you allow your ministries to continue even under various constraints. Your unceasing love never fails.

We thank you for those in Canada who continue to embrace a broken world in word and deed through their prayers and generous giving. I ask for continued protection and provision for all of CBM’s work in the world – for the Field Staff and local partners.

There is no social distancing between you and your people. May your people stand firm in your presence and keep looking forward to face every circumstance. We trust in Jesus Christ who endured the cross so that we can look forward to joy in you.

In Jesus’s name, we pray. Amen!

"Why Write?" Part One of Five Blogs on Writing

 

Saint Paul, the Apostle, sailed from Attalia

Why Write? (This is the first of five blog posts about writing.)

“Why write?” some people ask.

Contrast words and pictures. The scene below is of the Bay of Attalia (today Antalya, located in Southern Turkey). At the end of Paul’s first missionary journey, he left Attalia on his way back to Antioch, Syria. How many people enjoyed Attalia? Only a tiny percentage of the world’s population will ever catch a glimpse of this lovely Mediterranean city. Even in Turkey, only about 20% come here. But think of Paul’s writings! Millions have read of Paul being in Attalia at the end of his First Missionary Journey. The New Testament is available in 80% of the world’s population. Millions of Christians read his letters. Christian Churches owe much to Paul, and all the writers of the Old and New Testaments. Words travel through space and time. Words matter. Phrases hold people together. Writings come back to people. Sometimes in dreams. In conversations. In music and in poems.

Although words may be the most fragile “things” in the world, thoughts speed from one person to another. Strong men wield power with a single word. The Lord told Daniel, “But you, Daniel, close up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.” (Daniel 12:4) Like him, all the other authors of the Bible received a mandate to write.

Why write? My purpose is: “To inspire leaders to serve through godliness.” This phrase encapsulates a life-long goal. It summarizes 50 years of blog posts, letters, documents, biographies, and novels.

The next question for my next blog in this series is: “Why write a novel?

 

A Prayer for Lebanon

(Which country has suffered as much as Lebanon? Decades ago, Palestinian refugees came, and then a brutal civil war tore the country apart. Unbridgeable religious quarrels prevented a government from being accepted. Then came 1,000,000 Syrian refugees amid untangled political struggles. Recently, the financial crisis crippled businesses, and a terrible explosion in Beirut destroyed two of the five hospitals. Today, Covid patients are being turned away at hospitals and clinics.)

This is from Emad Botros as he prays in Beirut: 

Our heavenly Father, we thank you for your mercy and care. Yes, Lord, though we have been facing many challenges in our lives, your steadfast love never ceases, your mercy never ends, they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

We are grateful to you, our Father, for the opportunity that we have to serve you here in Lebanon, as a family and an organization. 

We pray for this beautiful country and especially for its uncertain future. We ask you to provide direction and guidance to those who are in power. In the middle of uncertainty, give the people of Lebanon hope, peace, and rest. Help them, o God, to trust in you as they think about the future of their kids. Help them to hear your calm and peaceful voice in the middle of all the many noisy voices around them. Guide their steps and give them strength and courage to follow your purpose for their lives.

We pray for our seminary in Beirut. We thank you, God, for leading us through this difficult time. To be able to adjust and start our new hybrid integrated theological program this week.

We lay down before you our new and current students as they attempt to adjust to the many responsibilities that they have while studying. Grant them energy and strength to pursue their studies. Help them to be able to balance work, studies, and family.

We pray for the Lebanese Society for Education and Social Development and the many ministries under their umbrella. We pray especially for SKILLED as they work hard to support many families with kids that have special needs. Grant these families your patience as they care for their kids at home during this frustrating time.

We thank you for MERATH and for their relief work among refugees. We pray for refugees in this very cold season – that they are able to experience your warm love and your goodness through the kindness that MERATH shows, in your name.

We pray for CBM’s staff, programs, and projects around the world – let your hand be upon the ministry all around the globe. May you bless the Canadian Baptists who continue to show your love generously through word and deed.

We lift up to you the CBM team here in Lebanon. We praise you, O God, for the continuing recovery of Joe and Alexi and their family. We ask you to extend your healing touch to their extended family as they fight the Coronavirus.

We pray for Elie and Mireille Haddad as they carry on the responsibility of leading the seminary during this challenging time. We thank you for their leadership, for the many sacrifices they have made, and we ask you, God, to give them strength and protect them from any disappointment.

As a family, we count on you in this season of our lives as we carry out our responsibilities. We need your strength, power, and joy in our lives. Wrap your arms around our kids, and help them to grow in your Word and in character.

We pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.